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COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES 


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Admiral  Farragut.  By  Captain  A.  T.  MAHAN,  U.  S.  N. 
General  Taylor.  By  General  O.  O.  HOWARD,  U.  S.  A. 
General  Andrew  Jackson.  By  JAMES  PARTON. 

General  Greene.  By  General  FRANCIS  V.  GREENE. 
General  J.  E.  Johnston. 

By  ROBERT  M.  HUGHES,  of  Virginia. 
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Commodore  Paul  Jones. 

By  CYRUS  TOWNSEND  BRADY. 

General  Meade.  By  ISAAC  R.  PENNYPACKER. 

General  McClellan.  By  General  PETER  S.  MICHIE. 
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D.  APPLETON'  AND  COMPANY,  NEW  YORK. 


GREAT    COMMANDERS 

*  *  *  * 

COMMODORE 
PAUL    JONES 


BY 

CYRUS  TOWNSEND    BRADY 

AUTHOR    OF 

REUBEN    JAMES,    A    HERO    OF    THE    FORECASTLE; 
THE  GRIP   OF    HONOR  ;    STEPHEN    DECATUR  ;    ETC. 


WITH  PORTRAIT  AND  MAPS 


NEW    YORK 

D.    APPLETON    AND    COMPANY 
1906 


COPYRIGHT,  1900, 
BY  D.  APPLETON  AND  COMPANY. 


All  rights  reserved. 


THIS     STORY 

OF    THE    LIFE    OF    ONE    OF    THE 
GREAT    FOUNDERS    OF    THE    REPUBLIC 

IS      RESPECTFULLY      DEDICATED 
TO 

GEORGE    CLIFFORD    THOMAS, 

A    NOBLE    EXEMPLAR 
OF    ITS    CITIZENSHIP. 


963196 


PREFACE. 


IN  preparing  this  work  I  began,  I  admit,  with 
an  ardent  admiration  for  John  Paul  Jones,  born  of 
long  study  of  his  career.  I  have  endeavored,  how- 
ever, so  far  as  possible,  to  lay  aside  my  precon- 
ceived opinions  and  predisposition  in  his  favor,  and 
I  have  conscientiously  gone  over  the  immense  mass 
of  material  bearing  upon  him,  de  novo,  in  an  attempt 
to  be  absolutely  and  strictly  impartial.  Perhaps  I 
have  not  altogether  succeeded,  but  if  it  be  found 
that  I  have  erred  in  Jones'  favor,  I  shall  be  glad 
that  I  have  followed  the  impulses  of  affection  rather 
than  those  of  depreciation.  I  have  not,  I  trust,  been 
blind  to  the  faults  in  the  character  of  the  great 
sailor,  nor  to  the  mistakes  he  committed,  nor  to  the 
wrongdoings  in  his  career  to  which  I  have  called 
attention ;  but,  in  spite  of  these  things,  which  I 
have  most  reluctantly  recorded,  I  am  happy  that  re- 
newed investigation,  careful  study,  and  much 
thought  have  only  endeared  him  the  more  to  me. 
I  lay  down  the  pen  with  a  higher  respect,  with  a 
more  affectionate  regard,  with  a  greater  admiration 
for  him  than  ever. 

In  Miss  Seawell's  fine  phrase,  "  It  may  be  said 


viii  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

of  him  as  of  the  great  Conde :  '  This  man  was  born 
a  captain.'  "  His  place  among  the  great  sea  kings 
as  a  strategist,  a  tactician,  and  a  fighter  is  now  un- 
questioned by  the  most  calumnious  of  his  defamers ; 
but  the  wound  he  inflicted  upon  British  pride  still 
rankles  after  the  lapse  of  more  than  a  century,  and 
his  professional  status  and  personal  character  are 
still  bitterly  aspersed.  So  doth  prejudice  blind  the 
eyes  of  truth.  I  have  devoted  some  space  to  the 
old  charge  that  he  was  a  pirate,  which  was  renewed 
recently  in  an  article  in  the  London  Academy,  one 
of  the  leading  journals  of  England,  and  I  trust  that 
the  reader  will  find  that  I  have  finally  disposed  of 
that  absurd  statement,  and  the  other  slanders  con- 
cerning him,  in  these  pages.  And  I  have  tried  to 
be  fair  to  the  enemy  as  well. 

Wherever  it  has  been  possible,  without  clogging 
the  narrative  or  letting  it  assume  the  form  of  a  mere 
collection  of  letters,  Paul  the  sailor,  like  Paul  the 
Apostle,  hath  been  permitted  to  speak  for  himself. 
Contrary  to  some  of  his  biographers,  I  have  made  it 
a  rule  to  accept  Jones'  o\vn  statements  unless  they 
were  controverted  by  adequate  evidence.  It  is 
proper  to  call  attention  to  the  fact  that' the  intent  of 
the  series,  of  which  this  is  one,  which  deals  prima- 
rily with  the  subjects  of  the  different  volumes  as 
great  commanders,  naturally  emphasizes  their  pub- 
lic exploits  rather  than  their  private  life.  This  will 
account  for  a  lack  of  amplification  in  certain  direc- 
tions, and  for  the  omission  of  details  of  certain 
periods  of  his  life  which,  were  "the  circumstances 
other  than  they  are,  would  probably  be  treated  of 
at  greater  length.  However,  it  is  believed  that 


PREFACE.  IX 

enough  appears  in 'the  pages  to  complete  the  picture 
and  exhibit  the  man. 

There  is  a  great  amount  of  matter  available  for 
the  study  of  his  life,  in  the  shape  of  lives,  essays, 
sketches,  and  general  histories,  and  contemporary 
memoirs,  and  an  immense  mass  of  manuscript  re- 
ports and  correspondence,  and  Jones  himself  left 
several  interesting  accounts  of  his  career  and  serv- 
ices, which  are  of  great  value  to  his  biographers. 
I  have  freely  used  all  sources  of  information  to  which 
I  could  gain  access,  and  they  have  not  been  few. 
It  will  be  only  justice,  however,  if  I  acknowledge 
that  among  the  authorities  consulted  I  have  found 
the  excellent  life  by  Commodore  Alexander  Slidell 
Mackenzie,  U.  S.  N.,  published  in  1841,  the  most 
useful.  Mackenzie  was  an  officer  and  seaman  of 
wide  experience  and  fine  talents,  whose  life  cov- 
ered the  period  of  our  naval  development  suc- 
ceeding the  War  of  1812,  and  his  comments  from 
a  sailor's  point  of  view  are  instructive  and  in- 
valuable. His  work  is  marred  by  an  unfortu- 
nate bias  against  Jones,  which  appears  in  several  in- 
stances ;  in  a  desire  to  be  accurate  and  just  he  has 
gone  to  a  censurable  extreme.  Two  other  books 
have  been  most  helpful :  the  life  by  John  Henry 
Sherburne,  sometime  Register  of  the  United  States 
Navy,  published  in  1825,  with  its  valuable  collection 
of  reports  of  participants  in  different  actions,  and 
statements  and  official  documents  not  otherwise 
preserved ;  and  the  life  compiled  from  the  manu- 
script furnished  by  Miss  Janette  Taylor,  a  niece  of 
the  great  commodore,  published  in  1830.  I  may 
also  add  that  I  have  found  Captain  Mahan's  ad- 


X  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

mirable  papers  upon  the  subject,  in  Scribner's 
Magazine,  of  great  value.  Indeed,  there  are  facts, 
observations,  and  deductions  in  these  articles  which 
appear  nowhere  else,  so  sure  is  the  touch  of  a  genius 
for  historical  accuracy  and  investigation  like  his. 
Among  other  essayists,  Miss  Molly  Elliott  Seawell, 
whose  facile  pen  has  done  so  much  to  exploit  our 
early  naval  heroes,  has  written  a  notable  and  inter- 
esting paper  which  appeared  in  the  Century  Maga- 
zine; while  Professor  John  Knox  Laughton,  the 
English  naval  expert,  in  his  celebrated  but  scandal- 
ous and  utterly  unjustifiable  attack,  gives  us  a 
modern  British  estimate  of  the  commodore.  I  shall 
pay  my  respects  to  his  contribution  later.  No  ex- 
tended life  has  been  published  for  fifty  years. 

My  thanks  are  due  to  General  Horace  Porter 
and  the  Honorable  Charlemagne  Tower,  LL.  D., 
ambassadors  of  the  United  States  to  France  and 
Russia  respectively,  for  investigations  in  answers 
to  inquiries,  and  for  suggestions ;  to  Dr.  Talcott 
Williams,  of  Philadelphia,  for  valuable  suggestions 
as  to  'sources  of  possible  information ;  to  the  Rev. 
Dr.  William  Elliot  Griffis,  of  Ithaca,  New  York,  for 
much  interesting  matter  connected  with  the  Baron 
van  der  Capellen,  for  unpublished  manuscript  notes 
on  North  Holland,  the  Helder,  and  the  Texel,  and 
for  the  rare  copy  of  the  old  Dutch  song,  "  Hir 
komt  Pauwel  Jones  aan,"  which  appears  in  the 
appendix ;  to  Lieutenant-General  O.  V.  Stuben- 
dorff,  Chief  of  the  Topographical  Section  of 
the  Imperial  Russian  General  Staff,  and  to  Major- 
General  E.  Sarantchof,  of  the  Russian  army,  for 
maps,  reports,  and  other  data  concerning  the  cam- 


PREFACE.  xi 

paign  on  the  Dnieper-Liman,  not  accessible  in  any 
American  books ;  to  Mr.  Charles  T.  Harbeck,  of 
New  York,  for  generous  permission  to  make  use  of 
rare  books  and  pamphlets  relating  to  Paul  Jones  in 
his  valuable  collection  of  Americana ;  to  Messrs.  W. 
M.  Gumming  and  Junius  Davis,  of  Wilmington, 
N.  C,  and  Mrs.  A.  I.  Robertson,  of  Columbia,  S.  C, 
for  information  concerning  the  assumption  of  the 
name  of  Jones  by  John  Paul,  not  hitherto  published 
in  book  form ;  to  Mr.  E.  G.  McCollin  and  the 
Misses  Mabel  S.  Meredith,  Edith  Lanigan,  and 
Bertha  T.  Rivailles  for  much  important  work  in 
translation ;  and  to  Miss  Isabel  Paris  for  invaluable 
assistance  in  transcribing  the  manuscript. 

Lest  any  of  the  above  should  be  involved  in  pos- 
sible criticisms  which  may  be  made  of  the  book,  I 
beg  to  close  this  preface  with  the  assurance  that  for 
everything  which  follows  I  alone  am  responsible. 

CYRUS  TOWNSEND  BRADY. 
PHILADELPHIA,  PA.,  July,  1900. 


CONTENTS. 


I. — ANCESTRY— BIRTH — EARLY    YEARS — PROFESSION 

— SUCCESS— CHANGE   OF   NAME  ....  I 

II. — COMMISSIONED  IN  THE  NAVY — HOISTS  THE  FIRST 

FLAG — EXPEDITION     TO     NEW     PROVIDENCE — 
ENGAGEMENT   WITH   THE   GLASGOW  .  l6 

III. — THE  CRUISE  OF  THE  PROVIDENCE      ...      38 
IV.— THE  CRUISE  OF  THE  ALFRED      .        .        .        .51 
V. — SUPERSEDED     IN     RANK  —  PROTESTS     VAINLY 

AGAINST    THE    INJUSTICE — ORDERED    TO    COM- 
MAND THE  RANGER — HOISTS  FIRST  AMERICAN 

FLAG 61 

VI. — THE    FIRST  CRUISE  OF  THE   RANGER — SALUTE 

TO  THE  AMERICAN  FLAG 77 

VII. — THE  SECOND  CRUISE  OF  THE  RANGER — THE 
DESCENT  ON  WHITEHAVEN — THE  ATTEMPT  ON 
LORD  SELKIRK — THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  DRAKE  91 

VIII. — STANDING  AND  WAITING 116 

IX. — THE  CRUISE  OF  THE  SQUADRON  .        .        .        .158 

X.— THE  BATTLE  WITH  THE  SERAPIS     .     .     .175 

XI. — AFTER  THE  BATTLE — REMARKS  ON  THE  ACTION  209 
XII. — UPHOLDING  AMERICAN  HONOR  IN  THE  TEXEL  .  229 
XIII. — THE  ESCAPE  OF  THE  ALLIANCE  ....  258 
XIV. — HONORS  AND  REWARDS — QUARREL  WITH  LAN- 
DAIS — RELINQUISHES  THE  ALLIANCE          .          .  268 

xiii 


xiv  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

CHAPTER  PAGE 

XV. — THE  CRUISE  OF  THE  ARIEL         ....    291 
XVI. — CAREER  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES  TO  THE  CLOSE 

OF  THE  WAR 304 

XVII. — PRIZE  AGENT  IN  FRANCE  AND  DENMARK — LAST 
VISIT  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES — A  BLOT  ON 
THE  ESCUTCHEON — FAMOUS  PASSAGE  OF  THE 

BALTIC       .        . 319 

XVIII.— IN    THE    RUSSIAN    SERVICE— OTCHAKOFF    AND 

THE  CAMPAIGN   IN   THE   LlMAN  .  .  -351 

XIX. — SLANDERED  IN    RUSSIA — A  SLAVONIC   REWARD 

FOR   FAITHFUL   SERVICES 390 

XX. — LAST  YEARS  AND  DEATH      ...  .  407 

XXI. — PERSONAL    APPEARANCE  —  CHARACTERISTICS  — 

WAS  HE  A  PIRATE  ?— FAREWELL      .        .        .  424 

APPENDICES 459 

INDEX  .        .        .        .       .       .       .        .        .  477 


COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ANCESTRY — BIRTH — EARLY      YEARS PROFESSION — 

SUCCESS — CHANGE    OF    NAME. 

OF  the  three  great  captains  whose  magnificent 
fighting  has  added  such  glorious  chapters  to  the 
history  of  our  naval  campaigns,  but  one,  George 
Dewey,  the  last  of  them  all,  is  purely  an  American 
by  birth  and  generations  of  ancestors.  Farragut, 
the  greatest  of  the  three,  was  but  one  remove  from 
a  Spaniard.  John  Paul  Jones,  first  of  the  group 
in  point  of  time  and  not  inferior  to  the  others  in 
quality  and  achievement,  was  a  Scotsman.  Only  the 
limitation  in  means  necessitated  by  the  narrow  cir- 
cumstances of  his  adopted  country  during  his  life- 
time prevented  his  surpassing  them  all.  He  remains 
to  this  day  a  unique  character  among  the  mighty 
men  who  trod  the  deck  and  sailed  the  ocean — a 
strange  personality  not  surpassed  by  any  in  the  long 
line  of  sea  fighters  from  Themistocles  to  Sampson. 
In  spite  of,  nay,  because  of  his  achievements,  he 
was  among  the  most  calumniated  of  men.  What 
follows  is  an  attempt  to  tell  his  story  and  to  do  him 
justice. 

Near  the  close  of  the  fifth  decade  of  the  eight- 


2  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

eenth  century,  George  I  reigned  in  England,  by 
the  grace  of  God  and  because  he  had  succeeded 
in  putting  down  the  rebellion  of  1745 ;  Frederick 
the  Great  was  tenaciously  clutching  the  fair  prov- 
ince of  Silesia  which  Maria  Theresa,  with  equal 
resolution  but  with  faint  prospect  of  success,  was 
endeavoring  to  retain ;  Louis  XV  (the  well  be- 
loved !)  was  exploiting  the  privileges  and  opportu- 
nities of  a  king  with  Madame  de  Pompadour  and  the 
Pare  aux  Ccrfs;  and  the  long  war  of  the  Austrian 
succession  was  just  drawing  to  a  close,  when  there 
was  born  on  July  6,  1747,  to  a  Scots  peasant,  named 
John  Paul,  and  to  Jean  MacDuff,  his  wife,  a  son, 
the  fifth  child  of  a  large  family.* 

The  youngster  was  duly  christened  John  Paul, 
Junior,  after  his  sire.    He  is  the  hero  of  this  history. 


*  Among  the  gross  slanders  by  which  envy  strove  to 
blacken  the  fame  of  the  great  commodore  in  after  years — 
the  foulest,  because  it  attempted  to  rob  a  virtuous  woman  of 
her  crown  of  honest  motherhood  and  question  the  legitimacy 
of  Jones'  birth — was  one  which  ascribed  his  paternity  to  the 
Earl  of  Selkirk.  To  the  English  snob  of  that  day  it  may 
probably  have  seemed  impossible  that  so  much  greatness 
could  spring  from  so  plain  a  stock,  and  in  a  left-handed 
descent  from  Lord  Selkirk  was  sought  an  explanation  of 
Jones'  fame.  The  calumny  was  refuted  not  only  by  its 
antecedent  incredibility,  but  by  the  testimony  of  persons  in 
position  to  affirm  as  to  the  high  personal  character  of  Jean 
MacDuff  Paul  and  by  the  loving  and  tender  family  relation- 
ship she  ever  sustained  to  her  husband  and  children.  The 
family  was  well  known  and  highly  respected.  It  may  be 
noted,  by  the  way,  that  the  Earl  of  Selkirk  was  not  conspic- 
uous for  ability  or  anything  else,  and  if  it  had  not  been  for 
a  subsequent  exploit  of  Jones'  he  would  have  been  forgotten 
long  since. 


ANCESTRY.  3 

He  first  saw  the  light  on  the  estate  of  Arbigland, 
in  the  parish  of  Kirkbean,  in  the  county  of  Kirkcud- 
bright, a  province  once  called  the  Royal  Stewartry 
of  Kirkcudbright  (pronounced  "  Kircoobree  "),  be- 
cause it  had  been  governed  formerly  by  a  steward  or 
deputy,  appointed  by  the  crown,  of  which  the 
county  had  been  an  appanage. 

The  father  of  the  subject  of  this  memoir  filled 
the  modest  situation  of  a  master  gardener,  a  pre- 
cursor of  the  modern  and  scientific  landscape  gar- 
dener, or  engineer,  in  a  small  scale,  in  the  employ  of 
a  Scots  bonnet  laird  named  Craik.  His  remote 
family — peasants,  yeomen  always — had  come  from 
the  ancient  lands  of  the  Thanes  of  Fife,  whence  his 
grandfather  had  removed  to  Leith,  where  he  kept 
a  mail  garden  or  wayside  inn — in  short,  a  tavern. 
It  is  to  the  credit  of  Master  John  Paul,  Senior — 
evidently  a  most  honest  and  capable  man  in  that 
humble  station  in  life  into  which  it  had  pleased  God 
to  call  him — that  he  forsook  the  tavern  and  clung 
to  the  garden.  When  he  had  finished  his  appren- 
ticeship as  gardener  he  removed  to  Arbigland, 
where  he  married  Jean  MacDuff,  the  daughter  of  a 
sturdy  yeoman  farmer  of  the  neighboring  parish 
of  New  Abbey,  whose  family  had  been  established 
in  their  present  location  from  time  immemorial. 

The  marriage  was  blessed  with  seven  children, 
the  two  youngest  sons  dying  in  infancy.  The  first 
was  a  boy  named  William  ;  the  next  three  were  girls, 
named  Elizabeth,  Janet,  and  Mary  Ann;  and  the 
fifth  and  last,  considering  the  death  of  the  infants, 
the  boy  named  John,  after  his  father.  En  passant, 
there  must  have  been  something  favorable  to  the 


4  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

development  of  latent  possibilities  in  gardeners'  sons 
in  that  corner  of  Scotland,  for  in  the  neighboring 
county  of  Ayr,  a  few  years  later  was  born  of  simi- 
lar bucolic  stock  the  son  of  another  tiller  of  the 
soil,  known  to  fame  as  Robbie  Burns ! 

The  cottage  in  which  young  Paul  made  his  first 
appearance  was  a  little  stone  building  in  a  verdant 
glade  in  a  thriving  wood  hard  by  the  north  shore 
of  the  Sohvay.  In  front  of  the  cottage  whose  white- 
washed walls  were  in  full  view  of  the  ships  which 
entered  the  Firth  there  was  a  patch  of  greensward. 
The  country  of  that  section  of  bonnie  Scotland 
in  which  is  the  parish  of  Arbigland  is  rugged 
and  broken.  .  To  the  east  and  to  the  west,  huge, 
craggy  mountains  shut  in  a  thickly  wooded  plateau, 
diversified  by  clear,  rapid  streams  abounding  in  fish. 
The  fastnesses  in  the  hills  even  then  were  covered 
with  romantic  ruins  of  decayed  strongholds  of  feu- 
dal times,  reminiscent  of  the  days  of  the  Black 
Douglasses  and  their  men.  The  coast  line,  unusu- 
ally stern  and  bold,  is  broken  by  many  precipitous 
inlets,  narrow  and  deep.  At  the  foot  of  the  cliffs  at 
low  tide  broad  stretches  of  sand  are  exposed  to 
view,  and  the  rapid  rise  of  the  tide  makes  these 
shelving  beaches  dangerous  places  upon  which  to 
linger.  The  water  deepens  abruptly  beyond  the 
beaches,  and  vessels  under  favorable  circumstances 
are  enabled  to  approach  near  the  shore. 

Amid  such  scenes  as  these  the  childhood  of 
young  Paul  was  passed.  Like  every  thrifty  Scots 
boy  of  the  period,  he  had  plenty  of  work  to  do  in 
assisting  his  mother  and  father.  The  life  of  a  Scots 
peasant  of  that  time  was  one  of  hard  and  incessant 


EARLY   YEARS. 


5 


toil ;  his  recreations  were  few,  his  food  meager,  his 
opportunities  limited,  and  the  luxuries  absent. 
Young  John  Paul  ate  his  porridge  and  did  his  work 
like  the  rest.  It  would  probably  now  be  considered 
a  sad  and  narrow  life,  which  the  stern  and  rigid 
austerity  of  the  prevailing  form  of  Calvinism  did 
nothing  to  lighten.  That  gloomy  religion,  however, 
did  produce  men. 

It  was  the  parish  school  which  shaped  and 
molded  the  minds  of  the  growing  Scots,  and  it 
was  the  Kirk  which  shaped  and  directed  the  schools, 
and  the  one  was  not  more  thorough  than  the  other. 
I  doubt  if  anywhere  on  earth  at  that  day  was  the 
standard  of  education  among  the  common  people 
higher  and  more  universally  reached  than  in  Scot- 
land. During  the  short  school  year  Paul  was  sent 
religiously  to  the  nearest  parish  school,  where  he 
was  well  grounded  in  the  rudiments  of  solid  learn- 
ing with  the  thoroughness  which  made  these  little 
schools  famous.  No  demands  of  labor  were  allowed 
to  interfere  with  the  claims  of  education.  On  Sun- 
day he  was  religiously  and  regularly  marched  to 
the  kirk  to  be  duly  inducted  into  the  mysteries  of 
the  catechism,  and  thoroughly  indoctrinated  with 
the  theory  of  predestination  and  its  rigorous  con- 
comitants. 

Of  him,  as  of  other  boys,  it  is  veraciously  stated 
that  he  conceived  a  great  fondness  for  the  sea,  and 
it  is  related  that  all  his  plays  were  of  ships  and 
sailors— a  thing  easily  understood  when  it  is  re- 
membered that  his  most  impressionable  hours  were 
spent  in  sight  and  sound  of  the  great  deep,  and  that 
the  white  sails  of  ships  upon  the  horizon  were  quite 


6  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

as  familiar  a  picture  to  his  youthful  vision  as  the 
tree-clad  hills  and  valleys  of  his  native  land.  It  is 
evident  that  he  had  no  fancy  for  the  garden.  A 
man  of  action  he,  from  his  bib-and-tucker  days.  His 
chroniclers  have  loved  to  call  attention  to  the  fact 
that  even  as  a  lad  he  manifested  the  spirit  of  one 
born  to  rule,  for  in  the  sports  and  games  it  was  his 
will  which  dominated  his  little  group  of  comrades — 
and  the  Scotsman,  even  when  he  is  a  child,  is  not 
easily  dominated,  be  it  remembered.  His  was  a 
healthy,  vigorous  boyhood. 

His  desire  for  the  sea  must  have  been  stronger 
than  the  evanescent  feeling  which  finds  a  place 
sooner  or  later  in  the  life  of  most  boys,  for  in  1759, 
with  the  full  consent  of  his  parents,  he  crossed  the 
Solway  to  Whitehaven,  the  principal  port  of  the 
Firth,  where  he  was  regularly  bound  apprentice  to 
a  merchant  named  Younger,  who  was  engaged  in 
the  American  trade.  He  was  immediately  sent  to 
sea  on  the  ship  Friendship,  Captain  Benson,  and  at 
the  tender  age  of  twelve  years  he  made  his  first 
voyage  to  the  new  land  toward  whose  freedom  and 
independence  he  was  afterward  destined  to  contrib- 
ute so  much.  The  destination  of  the  ship  happened 
to  be  the  Rappahannock  River.  As  it  fortunately 
turned  out,  his  elder  brother,  William,  had  some 
years  before  migrated  to  Virginia,  where  he  had 
married  and  settled  at  Fredericksburg,  and  by  his 
industry  and  thrift  finally  amassed  a  modest  fortune. 
Young  Paul  at  once  conceived  a  great  liking  for 
America  which  never  faltered ;  long  afterward  he 
stated  that  he  had  been  devoted  to  it  from  his  youth. 

The  ship  duties  in  port  not  being  arduous,  the 


EARLY   YEARS.  7 

young  apprentice,  through  the  influence  of  his 
brother,  was  permitted  to  spend  the  period  of  the 
vessel's  stay  in  America  on  shore  under  the  roof 
of  his  kinsman.  There  he  continued  his  studies  with 
that  zeal  for  knowledge  which  was  one  of  his  distin- 
guishing characteristics,  and  which  never  left  him 
in  after  life ;  for  it  is  to  be  noted  that  he  was  always 
a  student ;  indeed,  had  he  not  been  so,  his  subse- 
quent career  would  have  been  impossible.  It  was 
largely  that  habit  of  application,  early  acquired,  that 
enabled  him  to  advance  himself  beyond  his  original 
station.  He  especially  applied  himself  to  the 
science  of  navigation,  the  intricacies  of  which  he 
speedily  mastered,  so  that  he  became  subsequently 
one  of  the  most  expert  navigators  that  sailed 
the  sea. 

His  natural  inclination  for  the  sea  stood  him  in 
good  stead,  and  he  finally  acquired  a  complete 
knowledge  of  the  details  of  his  trying  profession. 
Upon  the  failure  of  Mr.  Younger,  who  surren- 
dered the  indentures  of  young  Paul  to  him  as 
the  only  thing  he  could  do  for  him  in  his  present 
circumstances,  he  was  sufficiently  capable  to  receive 
an  appointment  as  third  mate  on  the  slaver  King 
George,  of  Whitehaven.  A  few  years  after,  in  1766, 
being  then  but  nineteen  years  of  age,  he  was  ap- 
pointed to  the  most  responsible  position  of  chief 
mate  of  the  slaver  Two  Friends,  a  brigantine  of 
Jamaica.  The  contrast  between  the  old  and  the  new 
regime  is  brought  vividly  before  us  when  we  learn 
that  to-day  a  cadet  midshipman — the  lowest  naval 
rank  at  present — of  the  same  age  has  still  a  year  of 
schooling  to  undergo  before  he  can  even  undertake 


8  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

the  two  years'  probationary  t  cruise  at  sea  required 
before  he  can  be  commissioned  in  the  lowest  grade. 

Slave  trading  was  a  popular  and  common  voca- 
tion in  that  day,  not  reprehended  as  it  would  be  at 
present.  Gentlemen  of  substance  and  station  did 
not  scruple  to  engage  in  it,  either  as  providing 
money  and  receiving  profit,  or  as  actually  participat- 
ing as  master  or  supercargo  of  ships  in  the  traffic. 
It  is  interesting  to  note  that  young  Paul,  as  he  grew 
in  years  and  acquired  character,  became  intensely 
dissatisfied  with  slaving.  The  sense  of  the  cruelties, 
iniquities, and  injustice  of  the  trade  developed  in  him 
with  coming  manhood,  and  gradually  took  such 
possession  of  him  that,  as  was  stated  by  his  rela- 
tives and  himself,  he  finally  resolved  to  withdraw 
from  it. 

This  determination,  scarcely  to  be  expected  from 
one  of  his  birth  and  circumstances,  was  greatly  to 
his  credit.  The  business  itself  was  a  most  stirring 
and  lucrative  one,  and  for  a  young  man  to  have 
attained  the  rank  he  enjoyed  so  early  in  life  was 
evidence  that  he  need  have  no  fear  but  that  the 
future  would  bring  him  further  advancement  and 
corresponding  pecuniary  reward.  In  this  decision 
he  was  certainly  in  advance  of  his  time  as  well ;  but 
that  love  of  liberty  which  had  been  bred  in  him  by 
the  free  air  of  the  bold  hills  of  his  native  land,  and 
which  afterward  became  the  master  passion  of  his 
life,  for  which  he  drew  his  sword,  was  undoubtedly 
heightened  and  intensified  by  this  close  personal 
touch  with  the  horrors  of  involuntary  servitude. 

In  the  year  1768,  therefore,  giving  up  his  posi- 
tion on  the  Two  Friends,  he  sailed  as  a  passenger 


PROFESSION.  g 

in  the  brigantine  John,  bound  for  Kirkcudbright. 
It  happened  that  the  captain  and  mate  of  the  vessel 
both  died  of  fever  during  the  voyage,  and  at  the 
request  of  the  crew  Paul  assumed  command  and 
brought  the  vessel  safely  to  her  port.  Currie,  Beck 
&  Co.,  the  owners  of  the  John,  were  so  pleased  with 
this  exploit  that  they  appointed  young  Paul  master 
and  supercargo  of  the  vessel,  in  which  he  made  two 
voyages  to  the  West  Indies.  He  was  a  captain, 
therefore,  and  a  merchant  at  the  age  of  twenty-one. 
The  owners  of  the  John  dissolved  partnership  on 
the  completion  of  his  second  voyage,  and  disposed 
of  the  ship,  giving  Paul  the  following  honorable 
certificate  upon  his  discharge  from  their  employ : 

"  These  do  certify  to  whom  it  may  concern,  that 
the  bearer,  Captain  John  Paul,  was  two  voyages 
master  of  a  vessel  called  the  John,  in  our  employ  in 
the  West  India  trade,  during  which  time  he  ap- 
proved himself  every  way  qualified  both  as  a  navi- 
gator and  supercargo ;  but  as  our  present  firm  is 
dissolved,  the  vessel  was  sold,  and  of  course  he  is 
out  of  our  employ,  all  accounts  between  him  and  the 
owners  being  amicably  adjusted.  Certified  at  Kirk- 
cudbright this  ist  April,  1771. 

"  CURRIE,  BECK  &  Co." 

One  incident  in  his  West  Indian  service  is  wor- 
thy of  mention,  because  it  afterward  crept  out  in 
a  very  ugly  manner.  On  the  second  voyage  of  the 
John  the  carpenter,  a  man  named  Mungo  Maxwell, 
formerly  of  Kirkcudbright,  who  had  been  muti- 
nous, was  severely  flogged  by  the  order  of  Paul. 
Maxwell  was  discharged  at  the  island  of  Tobago. 


I0  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

He  immediately  caused  Paul  to  be  summoned  be- 
fore the  judge  of  the  vice-admiralty  court  for  as- 
sault. The  judge,  after  hearing  the  testimony  and 
statement  of  Captain  Paul,  dismissed  the  complaint 
as  frivolous.  Maxwell  subsequently  entered  on  a 
Barcelona  packet,  and  in  a  voyage  of  the  latter  ship 
from  Tobago  to  Antigua  died  of  a  fever.  Out  of 
this  was  built  up  a  calumny  to  the  effect  that  Max- 
well had  been  so  badly  punished  by  Paul  that  he 
died  from  his  injuries.  When  Paul  was  in  the  Rus- 
sian service  years  afterward  the  slander  was  en- 
hanced by  the  statement  that  Maxwell  was  his 
nephew.  There  was  nothing  w-hatever  in  the 
charge. 

After  his  retirement  from  the  command  of  the 
John  he  engaged  in  local  trading  with  the  Isle  of 
Man.  It  has  been  charged  that  he  was  a  smuggler 
during  this  period ;  but  he  specifically  and  vehe- 
mently denied  the  allegation,  and  it  is  certain  that 
the  first  entry  of  goods  shipped  from  England  to  the 
Isle  of  Man,  after  it  was  annexed  to  the  crown, 
stands  in  his  name  on  the  custom-house  books  of 
the  town  of  Douglas.  Soon  after  this  he  com- 
manded a  ship,  the  Betsy,  of  London,  in  the  West 
India  trade,  in  which  he  engaged  in  mercantile 
speculations  on  his  own  account  at  Tobago  and 
Grenada,  until  the  year  1773,  when  he  went  to  Vir- 
ginia again  to  take  charge  of  the  affairs  of  his 
brother  William,  "who  had  died  intestate,  leaving 
neither  wife  nor  children. 

Very  little  is  known  of  his  life  from  this  period 
until  his  entry  into  the  public  service  of  the  United 


SUCCESS.  !  j 

States.  From  remarks  in  his  journal  and  corre- 
spondence, it  is  evident,  in  spite  of  his  brother's 
property,  to  which  he  was  heir,  and  some  other 
property  and  money  which  he  had  amassed  by  trad- 
ing, which  was  invested  in  the  island  of  Tobago, 
West  Indies,  that  he  continued  for  some  time  in 
very  straitened  circumstances.  He  speaks  of 
having  lived  for  nearly  two  years  on  the  small  sum 
of  fifty  pounds.  It  is  probable  that  his  poverty  was 
due  to  his  inability  to  realize  upon  his  brother's 
estate,  and  the  difficulty  of  getting  a  return  of  his 
West  Indian  investments,  on  account  of  the  unset- 
tled political  conditions,  though  they  were  of  con- 
siderable value.  During  this  period,  however,  he 
took  that  step  which  has  been  a  puzzle  to  so  many 
of  his  biographers,  and  which  he  never  explained  in 
any  of  his  correspondence  that  remains.  He  came 
to  America  under  the  name  of  John  Paul ;  he  reap- 
peared after  this  period  of  obscurity  under  the  name 
of  John  Paul  Jones. 

It  is  claimed  by  the  descendants  of  the  Jones 
family  of  North  Carolina  that  while  in  Fredericks- 
burg  the  young  mariner  made  the  acquaintance  of 
the  celebrated  Willie  (pronounced  Wylie)  Jones, 
one  of  the  leading  attorneys  and  politicians  of  North 
Carolina.  Jones  and  his  brother  Allen  were  people 
of  great  prominence  and  influence  in  that  province. 
It  was  Jones'  influence,  by  the  way,  which  in  later 
years  postponed  the  ratification  of  the  proposed 
Constitution  of  the  United  States  by  North  Caro- 
lina. Willie  Jones  seems  to  have  attended  to  the 
legal  side  of  Paul's  claims  to  his  deceased  brother's 


12  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

estate,  and  a  warm  friendship  sprang  up  between 
the  two  young  men,  so  dissimilar  in  birth  and  breed- 
ing, which,  it  is  alleged,  ended  in  an  invitation  to 
young  Paul  to  visit  Jones  and  his  brother  on  their 
plantations. 

The  lonely,  friendless  little  Scotsman  gratefully 
accepted  the  invitation — the  society  of  gentle  people 
always  delighted  him ;  he  ever  loved  to  mingle  with 
great  folk  throughout  his  life — and  passed  a  long  pe- 
riod at  "  The  Grove,"  in  Northampton  County,  the 
residence  of  Willie,  and  at  "  Mount  Gallant,"  in 
Halifax  County,  the  home  of  Allen.  While  there, 
he  was  thrown  much  in  the  society  of  the  wife  of 
Willie  Jones,  a  lady  noted  and  remembered  for  her 
graces  of  mind  and  person,  and  who,  by  the  way, 
made  the  famous  answer  to  Tarleton's  sneer — 
wholly  unfounded,  of  course — at  the  gallant  Colonel 
William  A.  Washington  for  his  supposed  illiteracy. 
Morgan  and  Washington  had  defeated  Tarleton 
decisively  at  the  Cowpens,  and  in  the  course  of 
the  action  Washington  and  Tarleton  had  met  in 
personal  encounter.  Washington  had  severely 
wounded  Tarleton  in  the  hand.  The  Englishman 
had  only  escaped  capture  by  prompt  flight  and  the 
speed  of  his  horse.  "  Washington,"  said  the  sneer- 
ing partisan  to  Mrs.  Jones,  "  why,  I  hear  he  can't 
even  write  his  name !  "  "  No  ?  "  said  the  lady  quietly 
and  interrogatively,  letting  her  eyes  fall  on  a  livid 
scar  across  Tarletpn's  hand,  "  Well,  he  can  make  his 
mark,  at  any  rate." 

The  Jones  brothers  were  men  of  culture  and  re- 
finement. They  were  Eton  boys,  and  had  com- 
pleted their  education  by  travel  and  observation 


CHANGE   OF   NAME.  13 

in  Europe.  That  they  should  have  become  so  at- 
tached to  the  young  sailor  as  to  have  made  him 
their  guest  for  long  periods,  and  cherished  the  high- 
est regard  for  him  subsequently,  is  an  evidence  of  the 
character  and  quality  of  the  man.  Probably  for  the 
first  time  in  his  life  Paul  was  introduced  to  the 
society  of  refined  and  cultivated  people.  A  new 
horizon  opened  before  him,  and  he  breathed,  as  it 
were,  another  atmosphere.  Life  for  him  assumed 
a  different  complexion.  Always  an  interesting  per- 
sonality, with  his  habits  of  thought,  assiduous  study, 
coupled  with  the  responsibilities  of  command,  he 
needed  but  a  little  contact  with  gentle  people  and 
polite  society  to  add  to  his  character  those  graces  of 
manner  which  are  the  final  crown  of  the  gentle- 
man, and  which  the  best  of  his  contemporaries 
have  borne  testimony  he  did  not  lack.  The  im- 
pression made  upon  him  by  the  privilege  of  this 
association  was  of  the  deepest,  and  he  gave  to  his 
new  friends,  and  to  Mrs.  Jones  especially,  a  warm- 
hearted affection  and  devotion  amounting  to  ven- 
eration. 

It  is  not  improbable,  also,  that  in  the  society  in 
which  he  found  himself — and  it  must  be  remembered 
that  North  Carolina  was  no  less  fervidly  patriotic, 
no  less  desirous  of  independence,  than  Massachu- 
setts :  it  was  at  Mecklenburg  that  the  first  declara- 
tion took  place — the  intense  love  of  personal  lib- 
erty and  independence  in  his  character  which  had 
made  him  abandon  the  slave  trade  was  further  de- 
veloped, and  that  during  this  period  he  finally  de- 
termined to  become  a  resident  of  the  new  land ; 
a  resolution  that  made  him  cast  his  lot  with  the 


14  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

other  colonists  when  the  inevitable  rupture  came 
about. 

It  is  stated  that  in  view  of  this  determination  on 
his  part  to  begin  life  anew  in  this  country,  and  as  a 
mark  of  the  affection  and  gratitude  he  entertained 
for  the  family  of  his  benefactors,  he  assumed  the 
name  of  Jones.  It  was  a  habit  in  some  secluded 
parts  of  Scotland  and  in  Wales  to  take  the  father's 
Christian  name  as  a  surname  also,  .and  this  may 
have  been  in  his  mind  at  the  time.  He  did  not  as- 
sume the  name  of  Jones,  however,  out  of  any  dis- 
regard for  his  family  or  from  any  desire  to  dis- 
guise himself  from  them,  for,  although  he  last  saw 
them  in  1/71,  he  ever  continued  in  correspondence 
with  them,  and  found  means,  whatever  his  circum- 
stances, to  make  them  frequent  remittances  of 
money  during  his  busy  life.  To  them  he  left  all  his 
property  at  his  death.  It  is  certain,  therefore,  that 
for  no  reason  for  which  he  had  cause  to  be  ashamed 
did  he  affix  the  name  of  Jones  to  his  birth  name,  and 
it  may  be  stated  that  whatever  name  he  took  he 
honored.  Henceforth  in  this  volume  he  will  be 
known  by  the  name  which  he  made  so  famous.* 

One  other  incident  of  this  period  is  noteworthy. 
During  his  visit  to  North  Carolina  he  was  introduced 
by  the  Jones  brothers  to  Joseph  Hewes,  of  Edenton, 
one  of  the  delegates  from  North  Carolina  to  the  first 
and  second  Provincial  Congresses,  and  a  signer  of 
the  great  Declaration  of  Independence.  In  Congress 
Hewes  was  a  prominent  member  of  the  Committee 
on  Naval  Affairs,  upon  which  devolved  the  work 

*  See  Appendix  I. 


A   NAVAL   APPOINTMENT.  15 

of  beginning  and  carrying  on  the  navy  of  the  Revo- 
lution. When  the  war  broke  out  Paul  Jones  was 
still  living  in  Virginia.  But  when  steps  were 
taken  to  organize  a  navy  for  the  revolted  colonies, 
attracted  by  the  opportunities  presented  in  that  field 
of  service  in  which  he  was  a  master,  and  glad  of  the 
chance  for  maintaining  a  cause  so  congenial  to  his 
habit  of  life  and  thought,  he  formally  tendered  his 
services  to  his  adopted  country.  The  influence  of 
Willie  Jones  and  Hewes  was  secured,  and  on  the 
7th  of  December,  1775,  Jones  was  appointed  a  lieu- 
tenant in  the  new  Continental  navy. 

Additional  note  on  the  assumption  of  the  name  of  Jones. 

Mr.  Augustus  C.  Buell,  in  his  exhaustive  and  valuable 
study  of  Paul  Jones,  published  since  this  book  was  written, 
states  that  the  name  was  assumed  by  him  in  testamentary 
succession  to  his  brother,  who  had  added  the  name  of  Jones 
at  the  instance  of  a  wealthy  planter  named  William  Jones, 
who  had  adopted  him.  Mr.  Buell's  authority  rests  on  tradi- 
tion and  the  statements  made  by  Mr.  Louden,  a  great-grand- 
nephew  of  the  commodore  (since  dead),  and  of  the  sometime 
owner  of  the  Jones  plantation.  On  the  other  hand,  in  addi- 
tion to  the  letters  quoted  in  the  Appendix,  I  have  received 
many  others  from  different  sources,  tending  to  confirm  the 
version  given  by  me.  Among  them  is  one  from  a  Fredericks- 
burg  antiquarian,  who  claims  that  William  Paul  never  bore 
the  name  of  Jones  in  Fredericksburg.  General  Cadwallader 
Jones  (who  died  in  1899,  aged  eighty-six),  in  a  privately  pub- 
lished biography,  also  states  explicitly  that  he  heard  the 
story  from  Mrs.  Willie  Jones  herself.  Mr.  Buell,  in  a  recent 
letter  to  me,  calls  attention  to  the  fact — and  it  is  significant 
— that  absolutely  no  reference  to  the  North  Carolina  claim 
appears  in  any  extant  letter  of  the  commodore,  and  claims 
that  Hewes  and  Jones  were  acquainted  before  John  Paul 
settled  in  America.  As  the  official  records  have  all  been 
destroyed,  the  matter  of  the  name  will  probably  never  be 
absolutely  determined. 


CHAPTER   II. 

COMMISSIONED    IN    THE    NAVY HOISTS    THE    FIRST 

FLAG EXPEDITION     TO     NEW     PROVIDENCE 

ENGAGEMENT   WITH   THE   GLASGOW. 

THE  honor  of  initiative  in  the  origin  of  the 
American  navy  belongs  to  Rhode  Island,  a  doughty 
little  State  which,  for  its  area,  possesses  more  miles 
of  seaboard  than  any  other.  On  Tuesday,  October 
3,  1775,  the  delegates  from  Rhode  Island  introduced 
in  the  Continental  Congress  a  resolution  which  had 
been  passed  by  the  General  Assembly  of  the  prov- 
ince on  August  26th  of  the  same  year,  in  which, 
among  other  things,  the  said  delegates  were  in- 
structed to  "  use  their  whole  influence,  at  the  en- 
suing Congress,  for  building,  at  the  Continental  ex- 
pense, a  fleet  of  sufficient  force  for  the  protection 
of  these  colonies,  and  for  employing  them  in  such 
manner  and  places  as  will  most  effectually  annoy 
our  enemies,  and  contribute  to  the  common  defense 
of  these  colonies." 

Consideration  of  the  resolution  was  twice  post- 
poned, but  it  was  finally  discussed  on  the  7th  of 
October  and  referred  to  a  committee.  On  the  I3th 
of  October  the  committee  reported,  and  Congress 
so  far  accepted  the  Rhode  Island  suggestion  that 
the  following  resolution  was  passed : 
16 


COMMISSIONED    IN    THE   NAVY.  17 

"  Resolved,  That  a  swift  sailing  vessel,  to  carry 
ten  carriage  guns  and  a  proportionate  number  of 
swivels  with  eighty  men,  be  fitted  with  all  possible 
dispatch  for  a  cruise  of  three  months,  and  that  the 
commander  be  instructed  to  cruise  eastward  for  in- 
tercepting such  transports  as  may  be  laden  with 
warlike  stores  and  other  supplies  for  our  enemies, 
and  for  such  other  purposes  as  the  Congress  shall 
direct."  Another  vessel  was  also  ordered  fitted  out 
for  the  same  purpose. 

Messrs.  Deane,  Langden,  and  Gadsden  were  ap- 
pointed a  committee  to  carry  out  the  instructions 
embodied  in  the  resolution.  When  the  committee 
submitted  a  report,  on  the  3Oth  of  October,  it  was 
further  resolved  "  that  the  second  vessel  ordered  to 
be  fitted  out  on  the  I3th  inst.  be  of  such  size  as  to 
carry  fourteen  guns  and  a  proportionate  number  of 
swivels  and  men."  Two  other  vessels  were  also 
ordered  to  be  put  into  service,  one  to  carry  not  more 
than  twenty  and  the  other  not  more  than  thirty-six 
guns,  "  for  the  protection  and  defense  of  the  United 
Colonies,  as  the  Congress  shall  direct." 

This  may  be  considered  as  the  real  and  actual 
beginning  of  the  American  navy.  There  had  been 
numerous  naval  encounters  between  vessels  of  war 
of  the  enemy  and  private  armed  vessels  acting  under 
the  authority  of  the  various  colonies ;  and  Wash- 
ington himself,  with  the  approval  of  the  Congress, 
which  passed  some  explicit  resolutions  on  the  sub- 
ject on  October  5th,  had  made  use  of  the  individual 
colonial  naval  forces,  and  had  issued  commissions 
to  competent  men  empowering  them  to  cruise  and 
Intercept  the  transports  and  other  vessels  laden  with 
3 


1 8  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

powder  and  supplies  for  the  enemy,  but  no  formal 
action  looking  to  the  creation  of  a  regular  naval 
force  had  been  taken  heretofore. 

Congress  had  long  clung  to  the  hope  of  recon- 
ciliation with  the  mother  country,  and  had  been  ex- 
ceedingly loath  to  take  the  radical  step  involved  in 
the  establishment  of  a  navy,  for  in  the  mind  of  the 
Anglo-Saxon,  who  always  claimed  supremacy  on 
the  sea,  a  navy  is  primarily  for  offense.  To  constitute 
a  navy  for  defense  alone  is  to  invite  defeat.  Aggres- 
sion and  initiative  are  of  the  essence  of  success  in 
war  on  the  sea.  Now,  in  the  peculiar  condition  in 
which  the  United  Colonies  found  themselves,  a 
naval  force  could  be  used  for  no  other  purpose  than 
offense.  The  capacity  of  any  navy  which  the  colo- 
nies could  hope  to  create,  for  defensive  warfare, 
would  be  so  slender  as  to  be  not  worth  the  outlay, 
and  the  creation  of  a  navy  to  prey  upon  the  enemy's 
commerce  and  to  take  such  of  his  armed  vessels  as 
could  be  overcome  would  controvert  the  fiction  that 
we  were  simply  resisting  oppression.  It  would  be 
making  war  in  the  most  unmistakable  way. 

It  is  a  singular  thing  that  men  have  been  willing 
to  do,  or  condone  the  doing  of,  things  on  land  which 
they  have  hesitated  to  do  or  condone  on  the  sea. 
The  universal  diffusion  of  such  sentiments  is  seen 
in  the  absurdly  illogical  contention  on  the  part  of 
the  British  Government  subsequently,  that,  al- 
though a  soldier  on  land  was  a  rebel,  he  could  be 
treated  as  a  belligerent ;  while  a  man  who  stood  in 
exactly  the  same  relation  to  the  King  of  England 
whose  field  of  action  happened  to  be  the  sea  was  of 
necessity  a  pirate. 


COMMISSIONED   IN    THE   NAVY.  19 

At  any  rate,  by  the  acts  of  Congress  enumer- 
ated, a  navy  was  assembled,  and  the  plan  of  Rhode 
Island  was  adopted.  It  was  Rhode  Island,  by  the 
way,  which,  by  preamble  and  resolution,  sundered 
its  allegiance  to  Great  Britain  just  two  months  to 
a  day  before  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  To 
the  naval  committee  already  constituted,  Stephen 
Hopkins,  Richard  Henry  Lee,  John  Adams,  and 
Joseph  Hewes  were  soon  added.  The  committee 
at  once  undertook  the  work  of  carrying  out  the 
instructions  they  had  received.  On  the  5th  of  No- 
vember they  selected  for  the  command  of  the  pro- 
posed navy  Esek  Hopkins,  of  Rhode  Island,  a 
brother  of  the  famous  Stephen  Hopkins  who  was 
a  member  of  the  committee  and  one  of  the  most 
influential  members  of  the  Congress.  Other  officers 
were  commissioned  from  time  to  time  as  selections 
were  made,  and  commissions  and  orders  were  issued 
to  them  by  the  committee,  subject,  of  course,  to  the 
ratification  or  other  action  by  the  Congress.  Paul 
Jones'  commission  as  a  lieutenant,  as  has  been 
stated,  was  dated  the  7th  of  December,  1775. 

Esek  Hopkins,  who  was  born  in  1718,  was 
therefore  fifty-seven  years  of  age.  He  had  been  a 
master  mariner  for  thirty  years.  He  was  a  man  of 
condition  and  substance  wlio  had  traded  in  his  own 
ships  in  all  the  then  visited  parts  of  the  globe.  As 
a  commander  of  privateers  and  letters  of  marque 
he  was  not  without  experience  in  arms.  He  had 
been  created  a  brigadier  general  of  the  Rhode  Island 
militia  on  the  threatened  outbreak  of  hostilities,  a 
position  he  resigned  to  take  command  of  the  navy. 
On  the  22d  of  December  Congress  confirmed  the 


20  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

nomination  of  Hopkins  as  commander-in-chief,  and 
regularly  appointed  the  following  officers : 

fjohn  Paul  Jones, 
[  Dudley  Saltonstall, 

Rhodes  Arnold, 
Can-       Abraham  Whipple,     rirst  Lieu- 

4  Stansbury, 

tains.  ]  N.cholas  B.ddle  tenants.      H  H 

[John  Burroughs  Hopkins.  [  Jonathan  Pitcher] 

f  Benjamin  Seabury, 

Second       Joseph  Olney,  Third      r  John  Fanning, 

Lieuten-  <  Elisha  Warner,         Lieuten-  •{  Ezekiel  Burroughs, 
ants.         Thomas  Weaver,         ants.      I  Daniel  Vaughan. 
l_ McDougall. 

These  were,  therefore,  the  forerunners  of  that 
long  line  of  distinguished  naval  officers  who  have 
borne  the  honorable  commission  of  the  United 
States. 

In  addition  to  the  regular  course  pursued,  other 
action  bearing  upon  the  subject  of  naval  affairs  was 
had.  On  Saturday,  November,  25th,  Congress,  en- 
raged by  the  burning  of  Falmouth,  adopted  radical 
resolutions,  looking  toward  the  capture  and  confis- 
cation of  armed  British  vessels  and  transports,  di- 
recting the  issuance  of  commissions  to  the  captains 
of  cruisers  and  privateers,  and  creating  admiralty 
courts  and  prescribing  a  scheme  for  distributing 
prize  money.  On  November  28th  resolutions  pre- 
scribing "  Regulations  for  the  Government  of  the 
Navy  of  the  United  Colonies  "  were  adopted,  the 
first  appearance  of  that  significant  phrase  in  the 
records,  by  the  way. 

On  December  5th  the  seizure  of  merchant  ves- 
sels engaging  in  trade  between  the  Tories  of  Vir- 
ginia and  the  West  Indies  under  the  inspiration  of 
Lord  Dunmore,  was  ordered.  On  December  nth 


APPOINTED    TO    THE   ALFRED.  21 

a  special  committee  to  devise  ways  and  means  for 
*'  furnishing  these  colonies  with  a  naval  armament  " 
was  appointed.  Two  days  later  the  report  of  the 
committee  was  adopted,  and  thirteen  ships  were  or- 
dered built,  five  of  thirty-two,  five  of  twenty-eight, 
and  three  of  twenty-four  guns.  They  were  to  be 
constructed  one  in  New  Hampshire,  two  in  Mas- 
sachusetts, one  in  Connecticut,  two  in  Rhode  Island, 
two  in  New  York,  four  in  Pennsylvania,  and  one  in 
Maryland ;  the  maximum  cost  of  each  of  them  was 
sixty-six  thousand  six  hundred  and  sixty-six  dollars 
and  sixty-six  and  two  thirds  cents.  They  had  a  fine 
idea  of  accuracy  in  the  construction  corps  of  that 
day. 

But,  while  Congress  had  been  therefore  pre- 
paring to  build  the  navy,  the  regular  marine  com- 
mittee had  not  been  idle.  By  strenuous  effort  the 
committee  assembled  a  squadron.  A  merchant  ves- 
sel called  the  Black  Prince,  which  had  lately  arrived 
from  London  under  the  command  of  John  Barry 
(afterward  a  famous  American  commodore),  was 
purchased  and  renamed  the  Alfred,  after  King 
Alfred  the  Great,  who  is  commonly  believed  to  be 
the  founder  of  the  British  navy.  She  was  a  small, 
stanch  trading  vessel,  very  heavily  timbered,  and 
with  unusually  stout  scantlings  for  a  ship  of  her 
class,  although  of  course  not  equal  to  a  properly 
constructed  ship  of  war.  The  committee  armed  her 
with  twenty  9-pounders  on  the  main  deck,  and  four 
smaller  guns,  possibly  6-  or  4-pounders,  on  the  fore- 
castle and  poop,  and  she  was  placed  under  the  com- 
mand of  Captain  Dudley  Saltonstall.  Jones,  whose 
name  stood  first  on  the  list  of  first  lieutenants,  was 


22  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

appointed  her  executive  officer.  Hopkins  selected 
her  for  his  flagship.  Jones  had  been  offered  the 
command  of  one  of  the  smaller  vessels  of  the  squad- 
ron, but  elected  to  fill  his  present  station,  as  pre- 
senting more  opportunities  .for  acquiring  informa- 
tion and  seeing  service.  His  experience  in  armed 
vessels  had  been  limited ;  he  knew  but  little  of  the 
requirements  of  a  man-of-war,  and  deemed  he  could 
best  fit  himself  for  that  higher  command  to  which 
he  aspired  and  determined  to  deserve  by  beginning 
his  service  under  older  and  more  experienced  offi- 
cers— a  wise  decision. 

The  next  important  vessel  was  another  con- 
verted merchantman,  originally  called  the  Sally, 
now  named  the  Columbus,  after  the  great  discov- 
erer. She  was  a  full-rigged  ship  of  slightly  less 
force  and  armament  than  the  Alfred,  commanded  by 
Captain  Abraham  Whipple,  already  distinguished  in 
a  privateering  way.  In  addition  to  these  there  were 
two  brigs  called  the  Andrea  Doria  and  the  Cabot, 
commanded  by  Captains  Nicholas  Diddle  and  John 
Burroughs  Hopkins,  a  son  of  the  commander-in- 
chief.  The  Andrea  Doria  and  Cabot  carried  four- 
teen 4-pounders  each. 

Hopkins  arrived  at  Philadelphia  in  December, 
1775,  in  the  brig  Katy,  of  the  Rhode  Island  navy, 
which  was  at  once  taken  into  the  Continental  serv- 
ice and  renamed  the  Providence,  after  the  com- 
mander's native  town.  She  carried  twelve  light 
guns,  4-pounders.  There  were  also  secured  a  ten- 
gun  schooner  called  the  Hornet,  and  the  Wasp  and 
Fly,  two  eight-gun  schooners  or  tenders,  one  of 
which  Jones  had  refused.  The  work  of  outfitting 


HOISTS   THE    FIRST    FLAG.  23 

these  ships  as  generously  as  the  meager  resources 
of  the  colonies  permitted  had  been  carried  on  as- 
siduously before  the  arrival  of  the  commander-in- 
chief,  whose  first  duty,  when  he  reached  Philadel- 
phia, was  formally  to  assume  the  command. 

This  assumption  of  command  entailed  the  put- 
ting of  the  ships  in  commission  by  publicly  read- 
ing the  orders  appointing  the  commodore,  and  as- 
signing him  to  command,  and  hoisting  and  saluting 
the  flags.  The  officers  previously  appointed  had 
been  proceeding  somewhat  irregularly,  doubtless, 
by  going  on  with  their  preparations  prior  to  this  im- 
portant ceremony.  At  any  rate,  in  the  latter  part  of 
December,  1775,  or  the  early  part  of  January,  1776 
— the  date  not  being  clear,  the  authorities  not  only 
differing,  but  in  no  single  case  venturing  upon  a  defi- 
nite statement — all  things  having  been  made  ready, 
Commodore  Hopkins  with  his  staff  officers  entered 
the  commodore's  barge,  lying  at  the  foot  of  Wal- 
nut Street,  and  was  rowed  to  the  flagship.  The 
wharves  and  houses  facing  the  river  were  crowded 
with  spectators  to  witness  so  momentous  a  cere- 
mony as  the  commissioning  of  the  first  American 
fleet. 

It  has  been  recorded  that  it  was  a  bright,  cold, 
clear  winter  morning.  The  barge  picked  its  way 
among  the  floating  ice  cakes  of  the  Delaware,  and 
finally  reached  the  Alfred.  The  commodore 
mounted  the  side,  followed  by  his  staff,  and  was  re- 
ceived with  due  honors  in  the  gangway  by  the  cap- 
tain and  his  officers  in  such  full  dress  as  they  could 
muster.  The  crew  and  the  marines  were  drawn  up 
in  orderly  ranks  in  the  waist  and  on  the  quarter 


24  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

deck.  After  the  reading  of  the  commodore's  com- 
mission and  the  orders  assigning  him  to  the  com- 
mand of  the  fleet,  Captain  Dudley  Saltonstall 
nodded  his  head  to  John  Paul  Jones,  his  executive 
officer.  The  young  Scotsman,  with,  I  imagine,  a 
heart  beating  rarely,  stepped  forward  and  received 
from  the  veteran  quartermaster  the  end  of  the  hal- 
liards, to  which,  in  the  shape  of  a  neatly  rolled-up 
ball,  was  bent  a  handsome  yellow  silk  flag,  bearing 
the  representation  of  a  rattlesnake  about  to  strike 
(and  perhaps  a  pine  tree  also),  with  the  significant 
legend  "  Don't  tread  on  me."  With  his  own  hands 
the  young  lieutenant  hauled  the  rolled-up  ensign  to 
the  masthead,  and  then,  with  a  slight  twitch,  he 
broke  the  stops  and  there  blew  out  in  the  morning 
breeze,  before  the  eyes  of  the  commodore,  his  offi- 
cers, the  men  of  the  ships,  and  the  delighted  specta- 
tors on  shore,  the  first  flag  that  ever  flew  from  a 
regularly  commissioned  war  ship  of  the  United 
Colonies.  The  grand  union  flag,  a  red  and  white 
striped  ensign  with  the  English  cross  in  the  canton, 
was  also  hoisted.  The  flags  \vere  saluted  by  the 
booming  of  cannon  from  the  batteries  of  the  ships, 
and  with  cheers  from  the  officers  and  men  of  the 
squadron  and  the  people  on  the  shore,  and  thus  the 
transaction  was  completed,  and  the  navy  of  the 
United  States  began  to  be. 

The  ships  were  slight  in  force,  their  equipments 
meager  and  deficient,  and  of  inferior  quality  at  best. 
The  men  had  but  little  experience  in  naval  warfare, 
and  their  officers  scarcely  much  more.  There  were 
men  of  undoubted  courage  and  capacity  among 
them,  however,  and  several  to  whom  the  profession 


EXPEDITION    TO   NEW   PROVIDENCE.  25 

of  arms  was  not  entirely  new.  At  least  two  of  them, 
Jones  and  Biddle,  were  to  become  forever  famous 
for  their  fighting.  Compared  with  the  huge  and 
splendid  navy  of  England,  the  whole  force  was  an 
unconsidered  trifle,  but  it  was  a  beginning,  and  not 
a  bad  one  at  that,  as  the  mother  country  was  to  find 
out.  The  outfitting  of  the  squadron  was  by  no 
means  complete,  and,  though  the  commodore  with 
the  others  labored  hard,  the  work  proceeded  slowly 
and  with  many  hindrances  and  delays ;  it  was  never 
properly  done.  Then  the  ships  were  ice-bound  in 
Delaware  Bay,  and  it  was  not  until  nearly  two 
months  had  elapsed  that  they  were  able  to  get  to 
sea. 

The  principal  difficulty  in  the  rebellious  colonies, 
from  the  standpoint  of  military  affairs,  was  the  scar- 
city of  powder.  There  were  guns  in  respectable 
numbers,  but  without  powder  they  were  necessarily 
useless.  The  powder  mills  of  the  colonies  were  few 
and  far  between,  and  their  output  was  inadequate  to 
meet  the  demand.  It  is  now  well  known  that 
although  Washington  maintained  a  bold  front  when 
he  invested  the  British  army  in  Boston,  at  times 
his  magazines  did  not  contain  more  than  a  round 
or  two  of  powder  for  each  of  his  guns.  His  posi- 
tion was  a  magnificent  specimen  of  what  in  modern 
colloquialism  would  have  been  called  a  "  bluff." 
There  was,  of  course,  but  little  powder  to  spare  for 
the  improvised  men-of-war,  and  most  of  what  they 
had  was  borrowed  from  the  colony  of  Pennsylvania. 
To  get  powder  was  the  chief  end  of  military  men 
then. 

On    February    17,    1776,    the    little    squadron 


26  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

cleared  the  capes  of  the  Delaware,  and  before  night- 
fall had  disappeared  from  view  beneath  the  south- 
east horizon.  It  appears  that  the  orders  were  for 
Hopkins  to  sail  along  the  coast  toward  the  south, 
disperse  Dunmore's  squadron,  which  was  maraud- 
ing in  Virginia,  pick  up  English  coasting  vessels, 
and  capture  scattered  English  ships  cruising  be- 
tween Pennsylvania  and  Georgia  to  break  up  the 
colonial  coasting  trade  and  capture  colonial  mer- 
chantmen. But  it  also  appears  from  letters  of  the 
Marine  Committee  that  another  object  of  the  ex- 
pedition was  the  seizure  of  large  stores  of  powder 
and  munitions  of  warfare  which  had  been  allowed 
to  accumulate  at  New  Providence,  in  the  Bahama 
group,  and  that  Hopkins  sailed  with  much  discre- 
tion as  to  his  undertaking  and  the  means  of  carry- 
ing it  out.  The  Bahama  project  was  maintained  as 
a  profound  secret  between  the  naval  committee  and 
its  commodore,  the  matter  not  being  discussed  in 
Congress  even. 

With  that  end  in  view  the  commander-in-chief, 
by  orders  published  to  the  fleet  before  its  de- 
parture, appointed  the  island  of  Abaco,  one  of  the 
most  northerly  of  the  Bahama  group,  as  a  rendez- 
vous for  his  vessels  in  case  they  became  separated 
by  the  usual  vicissitudes  of  the  sea.  The  scattered 
ships  were  directed  to  make  an  anchorage  oft'  the 
southern  part  of  the  island,  and  wait  at  least  four- 
teen days  for  the  other  vessels  to  join  them  before 
cruising  on  their  own  account  in  such  directions 
as  in  the  judgment  of  their  respective  commanders 
would  most  annoy,  harass,  and  damage  the  enemy. 

Shortly  after  leaving  the  capes  the  squadron  ran 


EXPEDITION    TO  NEW    PROVIDENCE.  2/ 

into  a  severe  easterly  gale  off  Hatteras,  then,  as 
now,  one  of  the  most  dangerous  points  on  the  whole 
Atlantic  seaboard.  The  ships  beat  up  against  it, 
and  all  succeeded  in  weathering  the  cape  and  escap- 
ing the  dreaded  perils  of  the  lee  shore.  If  lack  of 
training  prevented  the  officers  from  claiming  to  be 
naval  experts,  there  were  prime  seamen  among 
them  at  any  rate.  When  the  gale  abated  Hopkins 
cruised  along  the  coast  for  a  short  time,  meeting 
nothing  of  importance  in  the  way  of  a  ship.  Rightly 
concluding  that  the  fierce  winter  weather  would 
have  induced  the  enemy's  vessels  to  seek  shelter  in 
the  nearest  harbors,  and  his  cruise  in  that  direction, 
if  further  continued,  would  be  profitless,  he  squared 
away  for  the  Bahamas,  to  carry  out  the  second  and 
secret  part  of  his  instructions. 

It  was  for  a  long  time  alleged  that  he  took  this 
action  on  his  own  account,  and  one  of  the  charges 
against  him  in  the  popular  mind  was  disobedience 
of  orders  in  so  doing ;  but  he  was  undoubtedly 
within  his  orders  in  the  course  which  he  took,  and 
it  is  equally  certain  that  the  enterprise  upon  which 
he  was  about  to  engage  was  one  in  which  more 
immediate  profit  would  accrue  to  the  colonies  than 
in  any  other.  He  should  be  held  not  only  guiltless 
in  the  matter,  but  awarded  praise  for  his  decision. 
On  the  ist  of  March  the  squadron,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  Hornet  and  the  Fly,  which  had  parted 
company  in  the  gale,  reached  the  island  of  Abaco, 
about  forty  miles  to  the  northward  of  New  Provi- 
dence. 

No  part  of  the  western  hemisphere  had  been 
longer  known  than  the  Bahamas.  Upon  one  of 


2g  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

them  Columbus  landed.  The  principal  island 
among  them,  not  on  account  of  its  size,  which  was 
insignificant,  but  because  it  possessed  a  commodi- 
ous and  land-locked  harbor,  is  the  island  of  New 
Providence.  No  island  in  the  great  archipelago 
which  forms  the  northeastern  border  of  the  Carib- 
bean had  enjoyed  a  more  eventful  history.  From 
time  immemorial  it  had  been  the  haunt  of  the  buc- 
caneer and  the  pirate.  From  it  had  sailed  many 
expeditions  to  ravage  the  Spanish  Ivlain.  It  had 
been  captured  and  recaptured  by  the  successive  na- 
tionalities which  had  striven  for  domination  in  the 
Caribbean,  and  in  their  brutal  rapacity  had  made  a 
hell  of  every  verdant  tropic  island  which  lifted  itself 
in  the  gorgeous  beauty  peculiar  to  those  latitudes, 
above  the  deep  blue  of  that  lambent  sea.  It  had  come 
finally  and  definitely  under  the  English  crown,  and 
a  civilized  government  had  been  established  by  the 
notorious  Woodes  Rogers,  who  was  himself  a  sort 
of  Jonathan  Wild  of  the  sea,  but  one  remove — and 
that  not  a  great  one — from  the  gentry  whose  nests 
he  broke  up  and  whose  ravages  he  had  put  down. 
It  had  been  taken  since  then  by  the  Spaniards,  but 
had  been  restored  to  the  British. 

The  town  of  Nassau,  which  lies  upon  the  north- 
ern face  of  the  island,  is  situated  upon  the  side  of 
a  hill  which  slopes  gently  down  toward  the  water. 
The  harbor,  which  is  sufficiently  deep  to  accom- 
modate vessels  drawing  not  more  than  twelve  feet, 
is  formed  by  a  long  island  which  lies  opposite  the 
town.  There  are  two  entrances  to  the  harbor,  only 
one  of  which  was  practicable  for  large  ships,  though 
both  were  open  for  small  vessels.  At  the  ends  of  the 


EXPEDITION   TO   NEW   PROVIDENCE.          59 

harbor,  commanding  each  entrance,  two  forts  had 
been  erected :  Fort  Montague  on  the  east  and  Fort 
Nassau  on  the  west.  Through  culpable  negligence, 
in  spite  of  the  quantity  of  military  stores  it  con- 
tained, there  was  not  a  single  regular  soldier  on 
the  island  at  that  time,  and  no  preparations  for  de- 
fense had  been  made. 

It  was  proposed  to  make  the  descent  upon  the 
western  end  of  the  island  and  then  march  up  and  take 
the  town  in  the  rear.  Paul  Jones,  however,  in  the 
council  which  was  held  on  the  Alfred  before  the  de- 
barkation, pointed  out  the  greater  distance  which  the 
men  would  have  to  march  in  that  case,  the  alarm 
which  would  be  given  by  the  passage  of  the  ships, 
and  advised  that  a  landing  be  effected  upon  the  east- 
ern end  of  the  island,  whence  the  attack  could  be 
more  speedily  delivered,  and,  as  the  ships  would  not 
be  compelled  to  advance,  no  previous  alarm  would 
be  given.  Hopkins  demurred  to  this  plan  on  the 
ground  that  no  safe  anchorage  for  the  ships  was 
afforded  off  the  eastern  end.  The  Alfred  had  taken 
two  pilots  from  some  coasting  vessels  which  had 
been  captured,  and  from  them  it  was  learned  that 
about  ten  miles  away  was  a  small  key  which  would 
afford  the  larger  vessels  safe  anchorage.  As  Hop- 
kins hesitated  to  trust  the  pilots,  Jones,  at  the  peril 
of  his  commission,  offered  in  conjunction  with  them 
to  bring  the  ships  up  himself.  His  suggestions  were 
agreed  to,  his  offer  accepted,  and  when  the  vicinity 
of  the  key  was  reached  he  took  his  station  on  the 
fore-topmast  crosstrees  of  the  Alfred.  He  had 
sailed  in  the  West  Indian  waters  many  times, 
and  was  familiar  with  the  look  of  the  sea  and  the 


30  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

indications  near  the  shore.  With  the  assistance  of 
the  pilots,  after  a  somewhat  exciting  passage,  he 
succeeded  in  bringing  all  the  ships  to  a  safe  an- 
chorage. That  he  was  willing  to  take  the  risk,  and, 
having  done  so,  successfully  carry  out  the  difficult 
undertaking,  gives  a  foretaste  of  his  bold  and  de- 
cisive character,  and  of  his  technical  skill  as  well. 

Preparations  for  attack  were  quickly  made. 
Commodore  Hopkins,  having  impressed  some  local 
schooners,  loaded  them  with  two  hundred  and  fifty 
marines  from  the  squadron,  under  the  command  of 
Captain  Samuel  Nichols,  the  ranking  officer  of  the 
corps,  and  fifty  seamen  under  the  command  of  Lieu- 
tenant Thomas  Weaver  of  the  Cabot,  and  on  March 
2d  the  transports  with  this  attacking  force  were  dis- 
patched to  Xew  Providence.*  They  were  convoyed 
by  the  Providence  and  the  Wasp,  and  a  landing 
was  effected  under  the  cover  of  these  two  ships  of 
war.  Unfortunately,  however,  some  of  the  other 
larger  vessels  got  under  way  at  the  same  time,  and 
their  appearance  alarmed  the  town. 

It  never  seems  to  have  occurred  to  any  one  but 
Jones  that  the  west  exit  from  the  harbor  should 
be  guarded  by  stationing  two  of  the  smaller  vessels 
off  the  channel  to  close  it  while  the  rest  of  the 
squadron  took  care  of  the  eastern  end.  It  seems 
probable  from  his  correspondence  that  he  ventured 
upon  the  suggestion,  for  he  specifically  referred  in 
condemnatory  terms  to  the  failure  to  do  so.  At  any 
rate,  if  he  did  suggest  it,  and  from  his  known  ca- 

*  The   Marine   Corps   was    established    by  the    Congress 
November  10,  1775. 


EXPEDITION    TO    NEW    1'ROYIDENCE.  31 

pacity  it  is  extremely  likely  that  the  obvious  precau- 
tion would  have  occurred  to  him,  his  suggestion  was 
disregarded,  and  the  western  pass  from  the  harbor 
was  left  open — a  fatal  mistake. 

The  point  where  the  expedition  landed  without 
opposition  was  some  four  and  a  half  miles  from 
Fort  Montague.  It  was  a  bright  Sunday  morning 
when  the  first  American  naval  brigade  took  up  its 
march  under  Captain  Nichols'  orders.  The  men  ad- 
vanced steadily,  and,  though  they  were  met  by  a 
discharge  of  cannon  from  Fort  Montague,  they  cap- 
tured the  works  by  assault  without  loss,  the  militia 
garrison  flying  precipitately  before  the  American 
advance.  The  marines  behaved  with  great  spirit 
on  this  occasion,  as  they  have  ever  done.  Instead 
of  promptly  moving  down  upon  the  other  fort,  how- 
ever, they  contented  themselves  during  that  day  with 
their  bloodless  achievement,  and  not  until  the  next 
morning  did  they  advance  to  complete  the  capture 
of  the  place. 

The  inhabitants  of  the  island  were  in  a  state  of 
panic,  and  when  the  marines  and  sailors  marched 
up  to  attack  Fort  Nassau  they  found  it  empty  of  any 
garrison  except  Governor  Brown,  who  opened  the 
gates  and  formally  surrendered  it  to  the  Americans. 
During  the  confusion  of  the  night  Brown  seems  to 
have  preserved  his  presence  of  mind,  and  rightly  di- 
vining that  the  powder  would  be  the  most  precious 
of  all  the  munitions  of  warfare  in  his  charge,  he  had 
caused  a  schooner  which  lay  in  the  harbor  to  be 
loaded  with  one  hundred  and  fifty  barrels,  the  limit 
of  its  capacity,  and  before  daybreak  she  set  sail  and 
made  good  her  escape  through  the  unguarded  west- 


32  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

ern  passage.  A  dreadful  misfortune  that,  which 
would  not  have  occurred  had  Jones  been  in  com- 
mand. 

However,  a  large  quantity  of  munitions  of  war 
of  great  value  to  the  struggling  colonies  fell  into 
the  hands  of  Hopkins'  men,  including  eighty-eight 


n  Sfjtutdrvn, 
Efcapt  of  Powder  Se\oont 
tt  of  Landing  Party. 
SCALE  OF  WILES 


Map  of  attack  on  New  Providence  in  the  Bahamas. 

cannon,  ranging  in  size  from  9-  to  36-pounders,  fif- 
teen large  mortars,  over  eleven  thousand  round 
shot,  and  twenty  precious  casks  of  powder.  The 
Americans  behaved  with  great  credit  in  this  con- 
quest. None  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  island  were 
harmed,  nor  was  their  property  touched.  It  was  a 
noble  commentary  on  some  of  the  British  forays 
along  our  own  coast.  Hopkins  impressed  a  sloop, 
promising  to  pay  for  its  use  and  return  it  when  he 
was  through  with  it,  which  promise  was  faithfully 
kept,  and  the  sloop  was  loaded  with  the  stores,  etc., 
which  had  been  captured. 


ENGAGEMENT    WITH    THE   GLASGOW. 


33 


His  own  ships  were  also  heavily  laden  with  these 
military  stores,  the  Alfred  in  particular  being  so 
overweighted  that  it  was  almost  impossible  to  fight 
her  main-deck  guns,  so  near  were  they  to  the  water- 
line,  except  in  the  most  favorable  circumstances  of 
wind  and  weather. 

Taking  Governor  Brown,  who  was  afterward 
exchanged  for  General  Lord  Stirling,  and  one  or 
two  other  officials  of  importance  as  hostages  on 
board  his  fleet,  Hopkins  set  sail  for  home  on  the 
1 7th  of  March.  He  had  done  his  work  expedi- 
tiously  and  well,  but  through  want  of  precaution 
which  had  been  suggested  by  Jones,  he  had  failed 
in  part  when  his  success  might  have  been  com- 
plete. Still,  he  was  bringing  supplies  of  great  value, 
and  his  handsome  achievement  was  an  auspicious 
beginning  of  naval  operations.  The  squadron  pur- 
sued its  way  toward  the  United  Colonies  without 
any  adventures  or  happenings  worthy  of  chron- 
icle until  the  4th  of  April,  when  off  the  east  end 
of  Long  Island  they  captured  the  schooner  Hawk, 
carrying  six  small  guns.  On  the  5th  of  April  the 
bomb  vessel  Bolton,  eight  guns,  forty-eight  men, 
filled  with  stores  of  arms  and  powder,  was  captured 
without  loss. 

On  the  6th,  shortly  after  midnight,  the  night 
being  dark,  the  wind  gentle,  the  sea  smooth,  and  the 
ships  very  much  scattered,  swashing  along  close- 
hauled  on  the  starboard  tack  between  Block  Island 
and  the  Rhode  Island  coast,  they  made  out  a  large 
ship,  under  easy  sail,  coming  down  the  wind  toward 
the  squadron.  It  was  the  British  sloop  of  war  Glas- 
gow, twenty  guns  and  one  hundred  and  fifty  men, 
4 


34  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

commanded  by  Captain  Tyringham  Howe.  She 
was  accompanied  by  a  small  tender,  subsequently 
captured.  The  nearest  ships  of  the  American  squad- 
ron luffed  up  to  have  a  closer  look  at  the  stranger, 
the  men  being  sent  to  quarters  in  preparation  for  any 
emergency.  By  half  after  two  in  the  morning  the 
brig  Cabot  had  come  within  a  short  distance  of  her. 
The  stranger  now  hauled  her  wind,  and  Captain 
John  Burroughs  Hopkins,  the  son  of  the  commo- 
dore, immediately  hailed  her.  Upon  ascertaining 
who  and  what  she  was  he  promptly  poured  in  a 
broadside  from  his  small  guns,  which  was  at  once 
returned  by  the  formidable  battery  of  the  Glasgow. 
The  unequal  conflict  was  kept  up  with  great  spirit 
for  a  few  moments,  but  the  Cabot  alone  was  no 
match  for  the  heavy  English  corvette,  and  after  a  loss 
of  four  killed  and  several  wounded,  including  the 
captain  severely,  the  Cabot,  greatly  damaged  in  hull 
and  rigging,  fell  away,  and  her  place  was  taken  by 
the  Alfred,  still  an  unequal  match  for  the  English 
vessel,  but  more  nearly  approaching  her  size  and 
capacity. 

The  Andrea  Doria  now  got  within  range  and 
joined  in  the  battle.  For  some  three  hours  in  the 
night  the  ships  sailed  side  by  side,  hotly  engaged. 
After  a  time  the  Columbus,  Captain  Whipple,  which 
had  been  farthest  to  leeward,  succeeded  in  crossing 
the  stern  of  the  Glasgow,  and  raked  her  as  she  was 
passing.  The  aim  of  the  Americans  was  poor, 
and  instead  of  smashing  her  stern  in  and  doing 
the  damage  which  might  have  been  anticipated,  the 
shot  flew  high  and,  beyond  cutting  the  Englishman 
up  aloft,  did  no  appreciable  damage.  The  Provi- 


ENGAGEMENT   WITH    THE   GLASGOW.          35 

dence,  which  was  very  badly  handled,  managed  to 
get  in  long  range  on  the  lee  quarter  of  the  Glasgow 
and  opened  an  occasional  and  ineffective  fire  upon 
her.  But  the  bulk  of  the  fighting  on  the  part  of 
the  Americans  was  done  by  the  Alfred. 

Captain  Howe  maneuvered  and  fought  his  ves- 
sel with  the  greatest  skill.  During  the  course  of 
the  action  a  lucky  shot  from  the  Glasgow  carried 
away  the  wheel  ropes  of  the  Alfred,  and  before  the 
relieving  tackles  could  be  manned  and  the  damage 
repaired  the  American  frigate  broached  to  and  was 
severely  raked  several  times  before  she  could  be  got 
under  command.  At  daybreak  Captain  Howe,  who 
had  fought  a  most  gallant  fight  against  overwhelm- 
ing odds,  perceived  the  hopelessness  of  continuing 
the  combat,  and,  having  easily  obtained  a  command- 
ing lead  on  the  pursuing  Americans,  put  his  helm 
up  and  ran  away  before  the  wind  for  Newport. 

Hopkins  followed  him  for  a  short  distance,  keep- 
ing up  a  fire  from  his  bow-chasers,  but  his  deep- 
laden  merchant  vessels  were  no  match  in  speed  for 
the  swift-sailing  English  sloop  of  war,  and,  as  with 
every  moment  his  little  squadron  with  its  precious 
cargo  was  drawing  nearer  the  English  ships  sta- 
tioned at  Newport,  some  of  which  had  already  heard 
the  firing  and  were  preparing  to  get  under  way, 
Hopkins  hauled  his  wind,  tacked  and  beat  up  for 
New  London,  where  he  arrived  on  the  8th  of  April 
with  his  entire  squadron  and  the  prizes  they  had 
taken,  with  the  exception  of  the  Hawk,  recaptured. 

The  loss  on  the  Glasgow  was  one  man  killed 
and  three  wounded ;  on  the  American  squadron,  ten 
killed  and  fourteen  wounded,  the  loss  being  con- 


36  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

fined  mainly  to  the  Alfred  and  the  Cabot,  the  Colum- 
bus having  but  one  man  wounded.  During  this 
action  Paul  Jones  was  stationed  in  command  of  the 
main  battery  of  the  Alfred.  He  had  nothing  what- 
ever to  do  with  the  maneuvers  of  the  ships,  and  was 
in  no  way  responsible  for  the  escape  of  the  Glasgow 
and  the  failure  of  the  American  force  to  capture  her. 

The  action  did  not  reflect  credit  on  the  Ameri- 
can arms.  The  Glasgow,  being  a  regular  cruiser 
and  of  much  heavier  armament  than  any  of  the 
American  ships,  was  more  than  a  match  for  any 
of  them  singly,  though  taken  together,  if  the  per- 
sonnel of  the  American  squadron  had  been  equal 
to,  or  if  it  even  approximated,  that  of  the  British 
ship,  the  latter  would  have  been  captured  without 
difficulty.  The  gun  practice  of  the  Americans  was 
very  poor,  which  is  not  surprising.  With  the 
exception  of  a  very  few  of  the  officers,  none  of  the 
Americans  had  ever  been  in  action,  and  they  knew 
little  about  the  fine  art  of  hitting  a  mark,  especially 
at  night.  They  had  had  no  exercise  in  target  prac- 
tice and  but  little  in  concerted  fleet  evolution. 
There  seems  to  have  been  no  lack  of  courage  except 
in  the  case  of  the  captain  of  the  Providence,  who 
was  court-martialed  for  incapacity  and  cowardice, 
and  dismissed  from  the  service.  Hopkins'  judgment 
in  withdrawing  from  the  pursuit  for  the  reasons 
stated  can  not  be  questioned,  neither  can  he  be 
justly  charged  with  the  radical  deficiency  of  the 
squadron,  though  he  was  made  to  suffer  for  it. 

While  the  Glasgow  escaped,  she  did  not  get  off 
scot  free.  She  wras  badly  cut  up  in  the  hull,  had  ten 
shot  through  her  mainmast,  fifty-two  through  her 


ENGAGEMENT    WITH    THE   GLASGOW. 


37 


mizzen  staysail,  one  hundred  and  ten  through  her 
mainsail,  and  eighty-eight  through  her  foresail. 
Her  royal  yards  were  carried  away,  many  of 
her  spars  badly  wounded,  and  her  rigging  cut  to 
pieces.  This  catalogue  tells  the  story.  The  Ameri- 
cans in  their  excitement  and  inexperience  had  fired 
high,  and  their  shot  had  gone  over  their  mark.  The 
British  defense  had  been  a  most  gallant  one,  and  the 
first  attack  between  the  ships  of  the  two  navies  had 
been  a  decided  triumph  for  the  English. 

Paul  Jones'  conduct  in  the  main  battery  of  the 
Alfred  had  been  entirely  satisfactory  to  his  superior 
officers.  He,  with  the  other  officers  of  that  ship, 
was  commended,  and  subsequent  events  showed  that 
he  still  held  the  confidence  of  the  commodore. 


CHAPTER  III. 

THE    CRUISE    OF    THE    PROVIDENCE. 

THE  British  fleet  having  left  Newport  in  the 
interim,  on  the  24th  of  April,  1776,  the  American 
squadron  got  under  way  from  New  London  for 
Providence,  Rhode  Island.  The  ships  were  in  bad 
condition ;  sickness  had  broken  out  among  their 
crews,  and  no  less  than  two  hundred  and  two  men 
out  of  a  total  of  perhaps  eight  hundred  and  fifty — at 
best  an  insufficient  complement — were  left  ill  at 
New  London.  Their  places  were  in  a  measure 
supplied  by  one  hundred  and  seventy  soldiers,  lent 
to  the  squadron  by  General  Washington,  who  had 
happened  to  pass  through  New  London,  en  route 
to  New  York,  on  the  day  after  Hopkins'  arrival. 
There  was  a  pleasant  interview  between  the  two 
commanders,  and  it  was  then  that  Jones  caught  his 
first  glimpse  of  the  great  leader. 

The  voyage  to  New  London  was  made  with- 
out incident,  except  that  the  unfortunate  Alfred 
grounded  off  Fisher's  Island,  and  had  to  lighten 
ship  before  she  could  be  floated.  This  delayed  her 
passage  so  that  she  did  not  arrive  at  Newport  until 
the  28th  of  April.  The  health  of  the  squadron  was 
not  appreciably  bettered  by  the  change,  for  over 
one  hundred  additional  men  fell  ill.  Many  of  the 
38 


THE   CRUISE   OF    THE    PROVIDENCE. 


39 


seamen  had  been  enlisted  for  the  cruise  only,  and 
they  now  received  their  discharge,  so  that  the  crews 
of  the  already  undermanned  ships  were  so  depleted 
from  these  causes  that  it  would  be  impossible  for 
them  to  put  to  sea.  Washington,  who  was  hard 
pressed  for  men,  and  had  troubles  of  his  own,  de- 
manded the  immediate  return  to  New  York  of  the 
soldiers  he  had  lent  to  the  fleet.  The  captain  of 
the  Providence  being  under  orders  for  a  court-mar- 
tial for  his  conduct,  on  the  ioth  of  May  Hopkins 
appointed  John  Paul  Jones  to  the  command  of  the 
Providence. 

The  appointment  is  an  evidence  of  the  esteem  in 
which  Jones  was  held  by  -his  commanding  officer, 
and  is  a  testimony  to  the  confidence  which  was  felt 
in  his  ability  and  skill ;  for  he  alone,  out  of  all 
the  officers  in  the  squadron,  was  chosen  for  im- 
portant sea  service  at  this  time.  Having  no  blank 
commissions  by  him,  Hopkins  made  out  the  new 
commission  on  the  back  of  Jones'  original  commis- 
sion as  first  lieutenant.  It  is  a  matter  of  interest 
to  note  that  he  was  the  first  officer  promoted  to 
command  rank  from  a  lieutenancy  in  the  American 
navy.  His  first  orders  directed  him  to  take  Wash- 
ington's borrowed  men  to  New  York.  After  spend- 
ing a  brief  time  in  hurriedly  overhauling  the  brig 
and  preparing  her  for  the  voyage,  Jones  set  sail  for 
New  York,  which  he  reached  on  the  i8th  of  May, 
after  thirty-six  hours.  Having  returned  the  men, 
Jones  remained  at  New  York  in  accordance  with 
his  orders  until  he  could  enlist  a  crew,  which  he 
presently  succeeded  in  doing.  Thereafter,  under 
supplemental  orders,  he  ran  over  to  New  London, 


4Q  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

took  on  board  such  of  the  men  left  there  who  were 
sufficiently  recovered  to  be  able  to  resume  their 
duties,  and  came  back  and  reported  with  them  to 
the  commander-in-chief  at  Providence.  He  had 
performed  his  duties,  routine  though  they  were, 
expeditiously  and  properly. 

He  now  received  instructions  thoroughly  to 
overhaul  and  fit  the  Providence  for  active  cruising. 
She  was  hove  down,  had  her  bottom  scraped,  and 
was  entirely  refitted  and  provisioned  under  Jones's 
skillful  and  practical  direction.  Her  crew  was  ex- 
ercised constantly  at  small  arms  and  great  guns,  and 
every  effort  made  to  put  her  in  first-class  condition. 
In  spite  of  the  limited  means  at  hand,  she  became  a 
model  little  war  vessel.  On  June  loth  a  sloop  of  war 
belonging  to  the  enemy  appeared  off  the  bay,  and  in 
obedience  to  a  signal  from  the  commodore  Jones 
made  sail  to  engage.  Before  he  caught  sight  of  the 
vessel  she  sought  safety  in  flight.  On  the  131!!  of 
June  the  Providence  was  ordered  to  Newburyport, 
Massachusetts,  to  convoy  a  number  of  merchant 
vessels  loaded  with  coal  for  Philadelphia.  Before 
entering  upon  this  important  duty,  however,  Jones 
was  directed  to  accompany  the  tender  Fly,  loaded 
with  cannon,  toward  New  York,  and,  after  seeing 
her  safely  into  the  Sound,  convoy  some  merchant 
vessels  from  Stonington  to  Newport. 

There  were  a  number  of  the  enemy's  war  vessels 
cruising  in  these  frequented  waters,  arid  the  carry- 
ing out  of  Jones'  simple  orders  was  by  no  means 
an  easy  task ;  but  by  address  and  skill,  and  that 
careful  watchfulness  which  even  then  formed  a  part 
of  his  character,  he  succeeded  in  executing  aU  his 


ENCOUNTER   WITH    THE   CERBERUS.  41 

duties  without  losing  a  single  vessel  under  his 
charge.  He  had  one  or  two  exciting  encounters 
with  English  war  ships,  the  details  of  which  are  un- 
fortunately not  preserved.  In  one  instance,  by 
boldly  interposing  the  Providence  between  the  Brit- 
ish frigate  Cerberus  and  a  colonial  brigantine  loaded 
with  military  stores  from  Hispaniola,  he  diverted 
the  attention  of  the  frigate  to  his  own  vessel,  and 
drew  her  away  from  the  pursuit  of  the  helpless  mer- 
chantman, which  thereby  effected  her  escape.  Then 
the  Providence,  a  swift  little  brig  admirably  handled, 
easily  succeeded  in  shaking  off  her  pursuer,  al- 
though she  had  allowed  the  frigate  to  come  within 
gunshot  range.  The  brigantine  whose  escape  Jones 
had  thus  assured  was  purchased  into  the  naval  serv- 
ice and  renamed  the  Hampden. 

The  coal  fleet  had  assembled  at  Boston  instead 
of  Newburyport,  and  in  pursuance  of  his  original 
orders  Jones  brought  them  safely  to  the  capes  of 
the  Delaware  on  the  ist  of  August.  The  run  to 
Philadelphia  was  soon  made,  and  Hopkins'  appoint- 
ment, under  which  he  was  acting,  was  ratified  by  the 
Congress,  and  the  commission  of  captain  was  given 
him,  dated  the  8th  of  August,  1776. 

Hitherto  Jones,  like  all  the  others  engaged  in 
the  war,  had  been  a  subject  of  England,  a  colonist 
in  rebellion  against  the  crown.  By  the  Declaration 
of  Independence  he  had  become  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States  engaged  in  maintaining  the  independ- 
ence and  securing  the  liberty  of  his  adopted  country. 
The  change  WPS  "most  agreeable  to  him.  It  added  a 
dignity  and  value  to  his  commission  which  could 
not  fail  to  be  acceptable  to  a  man  of  his  tempera- 


42  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

ment.  It  was  pleasant  to  him  also  to  have  the 
confidence  of  his  commander-in-chief,  which  had 
been  shown  in  the  appointment  to  the  command  of 
the  Providence,  justified  by  the  government  in  the 
commission  which  had  been  issued  to  him. 

Jones  had  made  choice  of  his  course  of  action 
in  the  struggle  between  kingdom  and  colony  de- 
liberately, not  carried  away  by  any  enthusiasm  of 
the  moment,  but  moved  by  the  most  generous  senti- 
ments of  liberty  and  independence.  He  had  much 
at  stake,  and  he  was  embarked  in  that  particular 
profession  fraught  with  peculiar  dangers  not  inci- 
dent to  the  life  of  a  soldier.  It  must  have  been, 
therefore,  with  the  greatest  satisfaction  that  he  per- 
ceived opportunities  opening  before  him  in  that 
cause  to  which  he  had  devoted  himself,  and  in  that 
service  of  which  he  was  a  master.  A  foreigner  with 
but  scant  acquaintance  and  little  influence  in  Amer- 
ica, he  had  to  make  his  way  by  sheer  merit.  The 
value  of  what  has  been  subsequently  called  "  a 
political  pull  "  with  the  Congress  was  as  well  known 
then  as  it  is  now,  and  nearly  as  much  used,  too. 
He  practically  had  none.  Nevertheless,  his  foot  was 
already  upon  that  ladder  upon  which  he  intended  to 
mount  to  the  highest  round  eventually.  He  was  not 
destined  to  realize  his  ambition,  however,  without 
a  heartbreaking  struggle  against  uncalled-for  re- 
straint, and  a  continued  protest  against  active  in- 
justice which  tried  his  very  soul. 

It  was  first  proposed  by  the  Marine  Committee 
that  he  return  to  New  England  and  assume  com- 
mand of  the  Hampden,  but  he  wisely  preferred  to 
remain  in  the  Providence  for  the  time  being.  He 


THE   CRUISE   OF   THE    PROVIDENCE. 


43 


thoroughly  knew  the  ship  and  the  crew,  over  which 
he  had  gained  that  ascendency  he  always  enjoyed 
with  those  who  sailed  under  his  command.  Not  so 
much  by  mistaken  kindness  or  indulgence  did  he 
win  the  devotion  of  his  men — for  he  was  ever  a  stern 
and  severe,  though  by  no  means  a  merciless,  disci- 
plinarian— but  because  of  his  undoubted  courage, 
brilliant  seamanship,  splendid  audacity,  and  uniform 
success.  There  is  an  attraction  about  these  qualities 
which  is  exercised  perhaps  more  powerfully  upon 
seamen  than  upon  any  other  class.  The  profession 
of  a  sailor  is  one  in  which  immediate  decision,  ad- 
dress, resource,  and  courage  are  more  in  evidence 
than  in  any  other.  The  seaman  in  an  emergency  has 
but  little  time  for  reflection,  and  in  the  hour  of 
peril,  when  the  demand  is  made  upon  him,  he  must 
choose  the  right  course  instantly — as  it  were  by  in- 
stinct. 

With  large  discretion  in  his  orders,  which  were 
practically  to  cruise  at  pleasure  and  destroy  the 
enemy's  commerce,  the  Providence  left  the  Dela- 
ware on  the  2  ist  of  August.  In  the  first  week  of 
the  cruise  she  captured  the  brigs  Sea  Nymph,  Fa- 
vorite, and  Britannia ;  the  first  two  laden  with  rum, 
sugar,  etc.,  and  the  last  a  whaler.  These  rich  prizes 
were  all  manned  and  sent  in. 

On  the  morning  of  the  ist  of  September,  being 
in  the  latitude  of  the  Bermudas,  five  vessels  were 
sighted  to  leeward.  The  sea  was  moderately 
smooth,  with  a  fresh  breeze  blowing  at  the  time,  and 
the  Providence  immediately  ran  off  toward  the 
strangers  to  investigate.  It  appeared  to  the  ob- 
servers on  Jones'  brig  that  the  largest  was  an  East 


44  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

Indiaman  and  the  others  ordinary  merchant  vessels. 
They  were  in  error,  however,  in  their  conclusions, 
for  a  nearer  approach  disclosed  the  fact  that  the  sup- 
posed East  Indiaman  was  a  frigate  of  twenty-eight 
guns,  called  the  Solebay.  Jones  immediately  hauled 
his  wind  and  clapped  on  sail.  The  frigate,  which 
had  endeavored  to  conceal  her  force  with  the  hope 
of  enticing  the  Providence  under  her  guns,  at  once 
made  sail  in  pursuit.  The  Providence  was  a  smart 
goer,  and  so  was  the  Solebay.  The  two  vessels  set- 
tled down  for  a  long  chase.  On  the  wind  it  be- 
came painfully  evident  that  the  frigate  had  the  heels 
of  the  brig.  With  burning  anxiety  Jones  and  his 
officers  saw  the  latter  gradually  closing  with  them. 
Shot  from  her  bow-chasers,  as  she  came  within 
range,  rushed  through  the  air  at  the  little  American 
sloop  of  war,  which  now  hoisted  her  colors  and  re- 
turned the  fire.  Seeing  this,  the  Solebay  set  an 
American  ensign,  and  fired  one  or  two  guns  to  lee- 
ward in  token  of  amity,  but  Jones  was  not  to  be 
taken  in  by  any  transparent  ruse  of  this  character. 
He  held  on,  grimly  determined.  As  the  Solebay 
drew  nearer  she  ceased  firing,  confident  in  her  abil- 
ity to  capture  the  chase,  for  which,  indeed,  there  ap- 
peared no  escape. 

An  ordinary  seaman,  even  though  a  brave  man, 
would  probably  have  given  up  the  game  in  his  mind, 
though  his  devotion  to  duty  would  have  compelled 
him  to  continue  the  fight  until  actually  overhauled, 
but  Tones  had  no  idea  of  being  captured  then.  Al- 
ready a  plan  of  escape  had  developed  in  his  fertile 
brain.  Communicating  his  intentions  to  his  officers, 
he  completed  his  preparations,  and  only  awaited  the 


ESCAPE    FROM    THE   SOLEBAY. 


45 


favorable  moment  for  action.  The  Solebay  had 
crept  up  to  within  one  hundred  yards  of  the  lee 
quarter  of  the  Providence.  If  the  frigate  yawed  and 
delivered  a  broadside  the  brig  would  be  sunk  or 
crippled  and  captured.  Now  was  the  time,  if  ever, 
to  put  his  plan  in  operation.  If  the  maneuver  failed, 
it  would  be  all  up  with  the  Americans.  As  usual, 
Jones  boldly  staked  all  on  the  issue  of  the  moment. 
As  a  preliminary  the  helm  had  been  put  slightly 
a-weather,  and  the  brig  allowed  to  fall  off  to  leeward 
a  little,  so  bringing  the  Solebay  almost  dead  astern 
— if  anything,  a  little  to  windward.  In  anticipation 
of  close  action,  as  Jones  had  imagined,  the  English 
captain  had  loaded  his  guns  with  grape  shot,  which, 
of  course,  would  only  be  effective  at  short  range. 
Should  the  Englishman  get  the  Providence  under 
his  broadside,  a  well-aimed  discharge  of  grape 
would  clear  her  decks  and  enable  him  to  capture  the 
handsome  brig  without  appreciably  damaging  her. 

From  his  knowledge  of  the  qualities  of  the 
Providence,  Jones  felt  sure  that  going  free — that  is, 
with  the  wind  aft,  or  on  the  quarter — he  could  run 
away  from  his  pursuer.  The  men,  of  course,  had 
been  sent  to  their  stations  long  since.  The  six  4- 
pounders,  which  constituted  the  lee  battery,  were 
quietly  manned,  the  guns  being  double-shotted  with 
grape  and  solid  shot.  The  studding  sails — light 
sails  calculated  to  give  a  great  increase  in  the  spread 
of  canvas  to  augment  the  speed  of  the  ship  in  a  light 
breeze,  which  could  be  used  to  advantage  going 
free  and  in  moderate  winds — were  brought  out  and 
prepared  for  immediate  use.  Everything  having 
been  made  ready,  and  the  men  cautioned  to  pay 


46  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

strict  attention  to  orders,. and  to  execute  them  with 
the  greatest  promptitude  and  celerity,  Jones  sud- 
denly put  his  helm  hard  up. 

The  handy  Providence  spun  around  on  her  heel 
like  a  top,  and  in  a  trice  was  standing  boldly  across 
the  forefoot  of  the  onrushing  English  frigate. 
When  she  lay  squarely  athwart  the  bows  of  the 
Solebay  Jones  gave  the  order  to  fire,  and  the  little 
battery  of  4-pounders  barked  out  its  gallant  salute 
and  poured  its  solid  shot  and  grape  into  the  eyes 
of  the  frigate.  In  the  confusion  of  the  moment,  ow- 
ing to  the  suddenness  of  the  unexpected  maneuver, 
and  the  raking  he  had  received,  the  English  captain 
lost  his  head.  Before  he  could  realize  what  had 
happened,  the  Providence,  partially  concealed  by  the 
smoke  from  her  own  guns,  had  drawn  past  him,  and, 
covered  with  great  wide-reaching  clouds  of  light 
canvas  by  the  nimble  fingers  of  her  anxious  crew, 
was  ripping  through  the  water  at  a  great  rate  at  a 
right  angle  to  her  former  direction. 

When  the  Solebay,  rapidly  forging  ahead, 
crossed  the  stern  of  the  saucy  American  a  few  mo- 
ments after,  she  delivered  a  broadside,  which  at  that 
range,  as  the  guns  were  loaded  with  grape  shot,  did 
little  damage  to  the  brig  and  harmed  no  one.  The 
distance  was  too  great  and  the  guns  were  badly 
aimed.  By  the  time  the  Solebay  had  emulated  the 
maneuvers  of  the  Providence  and  had  run  off,  the 
latter  had  gained  so  great  a  lead  that  her  escape 
was  practically  effected.  The  English  frigate  proved 
to  be  unable  to  outfoot  the  American  brig  on  this 
course,  and  after  firing  upward  of  a  hundred  shot  at 
her  the  Solebay  gave  over  the  pursuit.  This  escape 


CHASED    BY    THE    MILFORD. 


47 


has  ever  been  counted  one  of  the  most  daring  and 
subtle  pieces  of  seamanship  and  skill  among  the 
many  with  which  the  records  of  the  American  navy 
abound.  As  subsequent  events  proved,  the  failure 
to  capture  Jones  was  most  unfortunate  on  the  part 
of  the  English. 

Jones  now  shaped  his  course  for  the  Banks  of 
Newfoundland,  to  break  up  the  fishing  industry  and 
let  the  British  know  that  ravaging  the  coast,  which 
they  had  begun,  was  a  game  at  which  two  could 
play.  On  the  i6th  and  i7th  of  the  month  he  ran 
into  a  heavy  gale,  so  severe  in  character  that  he 
was  forced  to  strike  his  guns  into  the  hold  on  ac- 
count of  the  rolling  of  the  brig.  The  gale  abated  on 
the  iQth,  and  on  the  2Oth  of  September,  the  day  be- 
ing pleasant,  the  Providence  was  hove  to  and  the 
men  were  preparing  to  enjoy  a  day  of  rest  and 
amusement,  fishing  for  cod,  when  in  the  morning 
two  sail  appeared  to  windward.  As  Jones  was  pre- 
paring to  beat  up  and  investigate  them,  they  saved 
him  that  trouble  by  changing  their  course  and  run- 
ning down  toward  him.  They  proved  to  be  a  mer- 
chant ship  and  a  British  frigate,  the  Milford,  32. 

Jones  kept  the  Providence  under  easy  canvas 
until  he  learned  the  force  of  the  enemy,  and  then 
made  all  sail  to  escape.  Finding  that  he  was  very 
much  faster  than  his  pursuer,  he  amused  himself 
during  one  whole  day  by  ranging  ahead  and  then 
checking  his  speed  until  the  frigate  would  get 
almost  within  range,  when  he  would  run  off  again 
and  repeat  the  performance.  Tt  was  naturally  most 
tantalizing  to  the  officers  of  the  Milford,  and  they 
vented  their  wrath  in  futile  broadsides  whenever 


48  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

there  appeared  the  least  possibility  of  reaching  the 
Providence.  After  causing  the  enemy  to  expand  a 
large  quantity  of  powder  and  shot,  having  tired  of 
the  game,  Jones  contemptuously  discharged  a 
musket  at  them  and  sailed  away. 

On  the  2  ist  of  September  he  appeared  off  the 
island  of  Canso,  one  of  the  principal  fishing  depots 
of  the  Grand  Banks.  He  sent  his  boat  in  that  night 
to  gain  information,  and  on  the  22d  he  anchored  in 
the  harbor.  There  were  three  fishing  schooners 
there,  one  of  which  he  burned,  one  he  scuttled,  and 
the  third,  called  the  Ebenezer,  he  loaded  with  the 
fish  taken  from  the  two  he  had  destroyed,  and 
manned  as  a  prize.  After  replenishing  his  wood  and 
water,  on  the  23d  he  sailed  up  to  Isle  Madame, 
having  learned  that  the  fishing  fleet  was  lying  there 
dismantled  for  the  winter.  Beating  to  and  fro  with 
the  Providence  off  the  island,  on  that  same  evening 
he  sent  an  expedition  of  twenty-five  men  in  a  shal- 
lop which  he  had  captured  at  Canso,  accompanied 
by  a  fully  manned  boat  from  the  Providence.  Both 
crews  were  heavily  armed.  The  expedition  cap- 
tured the  fishing  fleet  of  nine  vessels  without  loss. 
The  crews  of  most  of  them,  numbering  some  three 
hundred  men,  were  ashore  at  the  time,  and  the  ves- 
sels were  dismantled.  Jones  promised  that  if  the 
men  ashore  would  help  to  refit  the  vessels  he  de- 
sired to  take  with  him  as  prizes,  he  would  leave 
them  a  sufficient  number  of  boats  to  enable  them  to 
regain  their  homes.  By  his  ready  address  he  actu- 
ally persuaded  them  to  comply  with  his  request,  and 
the  unfortunate  Englishmen  labored  assiduously  to 
get  the  ships  ready  for  sea. 


DESTRUCTION   AT   CANSO. 


49 


On  the  25th  of  September  their  preparations 
were  completed,  but  a  violent  autumn  gale  blew  up, 
and  their  situation  became  one  of  great  peril.  The 
Providence,  anchored  in  Great  St.  Peter  Channel, 
rode  it  out  with  two  anchors  down  to  a  long  scope 
of  cable.  The  ship  Alexander  and  the  schooner 
Sea  Flower,  which  were  heavily  laden  with  valuable 
plunder,  had  also  reached  the  same  channel.  The 
Alexander  succeeded  in  making  an  anchorage 
under  a  point  of  rocks  which  sheltered  her,  and  en- 
abled her  to  sustain  the  shock  of  the  gale  unharmed. 
The  Sea  Flower  was  driven  on  the  lee  shore,  and, 
being  hopelessly  wrecked,  was  scuttled  and  fired  the 
next  day.  The  Ebenezer,  loaded  with  fish  from 
Canso,  was  also  wrecked.  The  gale  had  abated 
about  noon,  when,  after  burning  the  ship  Adven- 
ture, dismantled  and  in  ballast,  and  leaving  a  brig 
and  two  small  schooners  to  enable  the  English  sea- 
men to  reach  home,  the  Providence,  accompanied 
by  the  Alexander  and  the  brigs  Kingston  Packet 
and  Success,  got  under  way  for  home.  On  the  2/th 
the  Providence,  in  spite  of  the  fact  that  she  was  now 
very  shorthanded  on  account  of  the  several  prizes 
she  had  manned,  chased  two  armed  transports  ap- 
parently bound  in  for  Quebec,  which  managed  to 
make  good  their  escape.  The  little  squadron  re- 
sumed its  course,  and  arrived  safely  at  Rhode  Island 
without  further  mishap  on  the  7th  of  October. 

On  this  remarkable  cruise  Jones  had  captured 
sixteen  vessels,  eight  of  which  he  manned  and  sent 
in  as  prizes,  destroying  five  of  the  remainder,  and 
generously  leaving  three  for  the  unfortunate  fisher- 
men to  reach  their  homes.  He  had  carried  out 

5 


50  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

his  orders  to  sink,  burn,  destroy,  and  capture  with 
characteristic  thoroughness,  but  without  needless 
cruelty  and  oppression.  He  burned  no  dwelling 
houses,  and  turned  no  non-combatants  out  of  their 
homes  in  the  middle  of  winter,  as  Mo  watt  had  done 
at  Falmouth.  He  had  entirely  broken  up  the  fish- 
ery at  Canso,  had  escaped  by  the  exercise  of  the 
highest  seamanship  from  one  British  frigate,  and 
had  led  another  a  merry  dance  in  impotent  pursuit. 
Property  belonging  to  the  enemy  had  been  de- 
stroyed to  the  value  of  perhaps  a  million  of  dollars 
in  round  numbers,  not  to  speak  of  the  effect  upon 
their  pride  by  the  bold  cruising  of  the  little  brig  of 
twelve  4-pound  guns  and  seventy  men. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

THE  CRUISE  OF  THE  ALFRED. 

WHEN  his  countrymen  heard  the  story  of  this 
daring  and  successful  cruise,  Jones  immediately  be- 
came the  most  famous  officer  of  the  new  navy.  The 
eclat  he  had  gained  by  his  brilliant  voyage  at  once 
raised  him  from  a  more  or  less  obscure  position, 
and  gave  him  a  great  reputation  in  the  eyes  of  his 
countrymen,  a  reputation  he  did  not  thereafter  lose. 
But  Jones  was  not  a  man  to  live  upon  a  reputation. 
He  had  scarcely  arrived  at  Providence  before  he 
busied  himself  with  plans  for  another  undertaking. 
He  had  learned  from  prisoners  taken  on  his  last 
cruise  that  there  were  a  number  of  American  pris- 
oners, at  various  places,  who  were  undergoing  hard 
labor  in  the  coal  mines  of  Cape  Breton  Island,  and 
he  conceived  the  bold  design  of  freeing  them  if  pos- 
sible. 

We  are  here  introduced  to  one  striking  charac- 
teristic, not  the  least  noble  among  many,  of  this 
great  man.  The  appeal  of  the  prisoner  always  pro- 
foundly touched  his  heart.  The  freedom  of  his  na- 
ture, his  own  passionate  love  for  liberty  and  inde- 
pendence, the  heritage  of  his  Scotch  hills  perhaps, 
ever  made  him  anxious  and  solicitous  about  those 
who  languished  in  captivity.  It  was  but  the  work- 
Si 


Squadron,  starting  at  Ph 
and  ending  at  A'tru-port. 


Crui*c  uf  the 

ttarting  at  Xewport,  via  Xrui  Fork, 

Boston,  Phi/a,Utpliia,  Canto,  and 

ending  at  Provident*. 
^__,_^_Crt(i««  of  the  Mfftd, 

starting  at  Prm'itlence  and 

ending  at  Botton. 

SCALE  OF  MILES 


Map  showing  the  cruise  of  the  first  American  squadron,  and 
of  the  Providence  and  the  Alfred. 


WRECK   OF    THE    HAMPDEN. 


53 


ing  out  of  that  spirit  which  compelled  him  to  relin- 
quish his  participation  in  the  lucrative  slave  trade. 
In  all  his  public  actions,  he  kept  before  him  as  one 
of  his  principal'  objects  the  release  of  such  of  his 
countrymen  as  were  undergoing  the  horrors  of  Brit- 
ish prisons. 

The  suggested  enterprise  found  favor  in  the 
mind  of  Commodore  Hopkins,  who  forthwith  as- 
signed Jones  to  the  command  of  a  squadron  com- 
prising the  Alfred,  the  Providence,  and  the  brigan- 
tine  Hampden.  Jones  hoisted  his  flag  on  board  the 
Alfred  and  hastened  his  preparations  for  departure. 
He  found  the  greatest  difficulty  in  manning  his  little 
squadron,  and  finally,  in  despair  of  getting  a  suf- 
ficient crew  to  man  them  all,  he  determined  to  set 
sail  with  the  Alfred  and  the  Hampden  only,  the  lat- 
ter vessel  being  commanded  by  Captain  Hoysted 
Hacker.  He  received  his  orders  on  the  22d  of 
October,  and  on  the  27th  the  two  vessels  got  under 
way  from  Providence.  The  wind  was  blowing  fresh 
at  the  time,  and  Hacker,  who  seems  to  have  been  an 
indifferent  sailor,  ran  the  Hampden  on  a  ledge  of 
rock,  where  she  was  so  badly  wrecked  as  to  be  un- 
seaworthy.  Jones  put  back  to  his  anchorage,  and, 
having  transferred  the  crew  of  the  Hampden  to  the 
Providence,  set  sail  on  the  2d  of  November. 

Both  vessels  were  very  short-handed.  The  Al- 
fred, whose  proper  complement  was  about  three 
hundred,  which  had  sailed  from  Philadelphia  with 
two  hundred  and  thirty-five,  now  could  muster  no 
more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty  all  told.  The  two 
vessels  were  short  of  water,  provisions,  munitions, 
and  everything  else  that  goes  to  make  up  a  ship 


54  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

of  war.  Jones  made  up  for  all  this  deficiency  by  his 
own  personality. 

On  the  evening  of  the  first  day  out  the  two 
vessels  anchored  in  Tarpauling  Cove,  near  Nan- 
tucket.  There  they  found  a  Rhode  Island  priva- 
teer at  anchor.  In  accordance  with  the  orders  of 
the  commodore,  Jones  searched  her  for  deserters, 
and  from  her  took  four  men  on  board  the  Alfred. 
He  was  afterward  sued  in  the  sum  of  ten  thousand 
pounds  for  this  action,  but,  though  the  commodore, 
as  he  stated,  abandoned  him  in  his  defense,  nothing 
came  of  the  suit. 

On  the  3d  of  November,  by  skillful  and  success- 
ful maneuvering,  the  two  ships  passed  through  the 
heavy  British  fleet  off  Block  Island,  and  squared 
away  for  the  old  cruising  ground  on  the  Grand 
Banks.  In  addition  to  the  release  of  the  prisoners 
there  was  another  object  in  the  cruise.  A  squadron 
of  merchant  vessels  loaded  with  coal  for  the  British 
army  in  New  York  was  about  to  leave  Louisburg 
under  convoy.  Jones  determined  to  intercept  them 
if  possible. 

On  the  1 3th,  off  Cape  Canso  again,  the  Alfred 
encountered  the  British  armed  transport  Mellish, 
of  ten  guns,  having  on  board  one  hundred  and  fifty 
soldiers.  After  a  trilling  resistance  she  was  cap- 
tured. She  was  loaded  with  arms,  munitions  of 
war,  military  supplies,  -and  ten  thousand  suits  of 
winter  clothing,  destined  for  Sir  Guy  Carleton's 
army  in  Canada.  She  was  the  most  valuable  prize 
which  had  yet  fallen  into  the  hands  of  the  Ameri- 
cans. The  warm  clothing,  especially,  would  be  a 
godsend  to  the  ragged,  naked  army  of  Washington. 


A   VALUABLE    PRIZE. 


55 


Of  so  much  importance  was  this  prize  that  Jones 
determined  not  to  lose  sight  of  her.  and  to  convoy 
her  into  the  harbor  himself.  Putting  a  prize  crew 
on  board,  he  gave  instructions  that  she  was  to  be 
scuttled  if  there  appeared  any  danger  of  her  recap- 
ture. 

About  this  time  two  other  vessels  were  captured, 
one  of  which  was  a  large  fishing  vessel,  from  which 
he  was  able  to  replenish  his  meager  store  of  pro- 
visions. On  the  I4th  of  November  a  severe  gale 
blew  up  from  the  northwest,  accompanied  by  a  vio- 
lent snowstorm.  Captain  Hacker  bore  away  to  the 
southward  before  the  storm  and  parted  company 
during  the  night,  returning  incontinently  to  New- 
port. The  weather  continued  execrable.  Amid 
blinding  snowstorms  and  fierce  winter  gales  the 
Alfred  and  her  prizes  beat  up  along  the  desolate 
iron-bound  shore.  Jones  again  entered  the  har- 
bor of  Canso,  and,  finding  a  large  English  trans- 
port laden  with  provisions  for  the  army  aground 
on  a  shoal  near  the  mouth  of  the  harbor,  sent  a 
boat  party  which  set  her  on  fire.  Seeing  an  im- 
mense warehouse  filled  with  oil  and  material  for 
whale  and  cod  fisheries,  the  boats  made  a  sudden 
dash  for  the  shore,  and,  applying  a  torch  to  the 
building,  it  was  soon  consumed. 

Beating  off  the  shore,  still  accompanied  by  his 
prizes,  he  continued  up  the  coast  of  Cape  Breton  to- 
ward Louisburg,  looking  for  the  coal  fleet.  It  was 
his  good  fortune  to  run  across  it  in  a  dense  fog.  It 
consisted  of  a  number  of  vessels  under  the  convoy 
of  the  frigate  Flora,  a  ship  which  would  have  made 
short  work  of  him  if  she  could  have  run  across  him. 


56  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

Favored  by  the  impenetrable  fog,  with  great  ad- 
dress and  hardihood  Jones  succeeded  in  capturing 
no  less  than  three  of  the  convoy,  and  escaped  un- 
noticed with  his  prizes. 

Two  days  afterward  he  came  across  a  heavily 
armed  British  privateer  from  Liverpool,  which  he 
took  after  a  slight  resistance.  But  now,  when  he 
attempted  to  make  Louisburg  to  carry  out  his  de- 
sign of  levying  on  the  place  and  releasing  the  pris- 
oners, he  found  that  the  harbor  was  closed  by 
masses  of  ice,  and  that  it  was  impossible  to  effect  a 
landing.  Indeed,  his  ships  were  in  a  perilous  con- 
dition already.  He  had  manned  no  less  than  six 
prizes,  which  had  reduced  his  short  crew  almost 
to  a  prohibitive  degree.  On  board  the  Alfred  he 
had  over  one  hundred  and  fifty  prisoners,  a  number 
greatly  in  excess  of  his  own  men ;  his  water  casks 
were  nearly  empty,  and  his  provisions  were  ex- 
hausted. He  had  six  prizes  with  him,  one  of  ex- 
ceptional value.  Nothing  could  be  gained  by  lin- 
gering on  the  coast,  and  he  decided,  therefore,  to 
return. 

The  little  squadron,  under  convoy  of  the  Alfred 
and  the  armed  privateer,  which  he  had  manned  and 
placed  under  the  command  of  Lieutenant  Saunders, 
made  its  way  toward  the  south  in  the  fierce  winter 
weather.  Off  St.  George's  Bank  they  again  en- 
countered the  Milford.  It  was  late  in  the  afternoon 
when  her^topsails  rose  above  the  horizon.  The  wind 
was  blowing  fresh  from  the  northwest ;  the  Alfred 
and  her  prizes  were  on  the  starboard  tack,  the  enemy 
was  to  windward.  From  his  previous  experience 
Jones  was  able  fairly  to  estimate  the  speed  of  the 


THE    MILFORD  AGAIN. 


57 


Milford.  A  careful  examination  convinced  him  that 
it  would  be  impossible  for  the  latter  to  close  with 
his  ships  before  nightfall.  He  therefore  placed  the 
Alfred  and  the  privateer  between  the  English  frigate 
lasking  down  upon  them  and  the  rest  of  his  ships, 
and  continued  his  course.  He  then  signaled  the 
prizes,  with  the  exception  of  the  privateer,  that  they 
should  disregard  any  orders  or  signals  which  he 
might  give  in  the  night,  and  hold  on  as  they  were. 

The  prizes  were  slow  sailers,  and,  as  the  slowest 
necessarily  set  the  pace  for  the  whole  squadron,  the 
Milford  gradually  overhauled  them.  At  the  close  of 
the  short  winter  day,  when  the  night  fell  and  the 
darkness  rendered  sight  of  the  pursued  impossible, 
Jones  showed  a  set  of  lantern  signals,  and,  hanging 
a  top  light  on  the  Alfred,  right  where  it  would  be 
seen  by  the  Englishmen,  at  midnight,  followed  by 
the  privateer,  he  changed  his  course  directly  away 
from  the  prizes.  The  Milford  promptly  altered  her 
course  and  pursued  the  light.  The  prizes,  in  obedi- 
ence to  their  orders,  held  on  as  they  were.  At  day- 
break the  prizes  were  nowhere  to  be  seen,  and  the 
Milford  was  booming  along  after  the  privateer  and 
the  Alfred. 

To  run  was  no  part  of  Paul  Jones*  desires,  and 
he  determined  to  make  a  closer  inspection  of  the 
Milford,  with  a  view  to  engaging  if  a  possibility  of 
capturing  her  presented  itself;  so  he  bore  up  and 
headed  for  the  oncoming  British  frigate.  The 
privateer  did  the  same.  A  nearer  view,  however, 
developed  the  strength  of  the  enemy,  and  convinced 
him  that  it  would  be  madness  to  attempt  to  engage 
with  the  Alfred  and  the  privateer  in  the  condition  he 


58  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

then  was,  so  he  hauled  aboard  his  port  tacks  once 
more,  and,  signaling  to  the  privateer,  stood  off 
again.  For  some  reason — Jones  imagined  that  it 
was  caused  by  a  mistaken  idea  of  the  strength  of 
the  Milford — Saunders  signaled  to  Jones  that  the 
Milford  was  of  inferior  force,  and  disregarding  his 
orders  foolishly  ran  down  under  her  lee  from  a  posi- 
tion of  perfect  safety,  and  was  captured  without  a 
blow.  The  lack  of  proper  subordination  in  the  nas- 
cent navy  of  the  United  States  brought  about  many 
disasters,  and  this  was  one  of  them.  Jones  char- 
acterized this  as  an  act  of  folly ;  it  is  difficult  to  dis- 
miss it  thus  mildly.  I  would  fain  do  no  man  an 
injustice,  but  if  a  man  wanted  to  be  a  traitor  that 
is  the  way  he  would  act.  Jones'  own  account  of 
this  adventure,  which  follows,  is  of  deep  interest : 

"  This  led  the  Milford  entirely  out  of  the  way 
of  the  prizes,  and  particularly  the  clothing  ship, 
Mellish,  for  they  were  all  out  of  sight  in  the  morn- 
ing. I  had  now  to  get  out  of  the  difficulty  in  the 
best  way  I  could.  In  the  morning  we  again  tacked, 
and  as  the  Milford  did  not  make  much  appearance 
I  was  unwilling  to  quit  her  without  a  certainty  of 
her  superior  force.  She  was  out  of  shot,  on  the  lee 
quarter,  and  as  I  could  only  see  her  bow,  I  ordered 
the  letter  of  marque,  Lieutenant  Saunders,  that  held 
a  much  better  wind  than  the  Alfred,  to  drop  slowly 
astern,  until  he  could  discover  by  a  view  of  the 
enemy's  side  whether  she  was  of  superior  or  in- 
ferior force,  and  to  make  a  signal  accordingly.  On 
seeing  Mr.  Saunders  drop  astern,  the  Milford  wore 
suddenly  and  crowded  sail  toward  the  northeast. 


LOSS   OF   THE    PRIVATEER.  59 

This  raised  in  me  such  doubts  as  determined  me  to 
wear  also,  and  give  chase.  Mr.  Saunders  steered  by 
the  wind,  while  the  Milford  went  lasking,  and  the 
Alfred  followed  her  with  a  pressed  sail,  so  that  Mr. 
Saunders  was  soon  almost  hull  down  to  windward. 
At  last  the  Milford  tacked  again,  but  I  did  not  tack 
the  Alfred  till  I  had  the  enemy's  side  fairly  open, 
and  could  plainly  see  her  force.  I  then  tacked  about 
ten  o'clock.  The  Alfred  being  too  light  to  be  steered 
by  the  wind,  I  bore  away  two  points,  while  the  Mil- 
ford  steered  close  by  the  wind,  to  gain  the  Alfred's 
wake ;  and  by  that  means  he  dropped  astern,  not- 
withstanding his  superior  sailing.  The  weather, 
too,  which  became  exceedingly  squally,  enabled  me 
to  outdo  the  Milford  by  carrying  more  sail.  I  began 
to  be  under  no  apprehension  from  the  enemy's  su- 
periority, for  there  was  every  appearance  of  a  severe 
gale,  which  really  took  place  in  the  night.  To  my 
great  surprise,  however,  Mr.  Saunders,  toward  four 
o'clock,  bore  down  on  the  Milford,  made  .the  signal 
of  her  inferior  force,  ran  under  her  lee,  and  was 
taken!" 

With  the  exception  of  one  small  vessel,  which 
was  recaptured,  the  prizes  all  arrived  safely,  the 
precious  Mellish  finally  reaching  the  harbor  of  Dart- 
mouth. The  Alfred  dropped  anchor  at  Boston,  De- 
cember 15,  1/76.  The  news  of  the  captured  cloth- 
ing reached  Washington  and  gladdened  his  heart — 
and  the  hearts  of  his  troops  as  well — on  the  eve  of 
the  battle  of  Trenton. 

The  reward  for  this  brilliant  and  successful 
cruise,  the  splendid  results  of  which  had  been 


60  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

brought  about  by  the  most  meager  means,  was  an 
order  relieving  him  of  the  command  of  the  Alfred 
and  assigning  him  to  the  Providence  again.  When 
he  arrived  at  Philadelphia  the  next  spring  he  found 
that  by  an  act  of  Congress,  on  the  loth  of  October, 
1776,  which  had  created  a  number  of  captains  in 
the  navy,  he,  who  had  been  first  on  the  list  of  lieu- 
tenants, and  therefore  the  sixth  ranking  sea  officer, 
was  now  made  the  eighteenth  captain.  He  was 
passed  over  by  men  who  had  no  claim  whatever  to 
superiority  on  the  score  of  their  service  to  the  Com- 
monwealth, which  had  been  inconsiderable  or  noth- 
ing at  all.  Indeed,  there  was  no  man  in  the  coun- 
try who  by  merit  or  achievement  was  entitled  to 
precede  him,  except  possibly  Nicholas  Biddle. 

If  the  friendless  Scotsman  had  commanded  more 
influence,  more  political  prestige,  so  that  he  might 
have  been  rewarded  for  his  auspicious  services  by 
placing  him  at  the  head  of  the  navy,  I  venture  to 
believe  that  some  glorious  chapters  in  our  marine 
history  would  have  been  written. 


CHAPTER   V. 

SUPERSEDED  IN    RANK PROTESTS    VAINLY   AGAINST 

THE     INJUSTICE ORDERED     TO     COMMAND     THE 

RANGER — HOISTS   FIRST  AMERICAN   FLAG. 

THE  period  between  the  termination  of  his  last 
cruise  and  his  assignment  to  his  next  important 
command  was  employed  by  Jones  in  vigorous  and 
proper  protests  against  the  arbitrary  action  of  Con- 
gress, which  had  deprived  him  of  that  position  on 
the  navy  list  which  was  his  just  due,  were  either 
merit,  date  of  commission,  or  quality  of  service  con- 
sidered. To  the  ordinary  citizen  the  question  may 
appear  of  little  interest,  but  to  the  professional  sol- 
dier or  sailor  it  is  of  the  first  importance.  Indeed, 
it  is  impossible  to  conceive  of  properly  maintaining 
an  army  or  navy  without  regular  promotion,  defini- 
tive station,  and  adequate  reward  of  merit.  To  feel 
that  rank  is  temporary  and  position  is  at  the  will  of 
unreasonable  and  irresponsible  direction  is  to  under- 
mine service. 

The  same  injustice  drove  John  Stark,  of  New 

Hampshire,  to  resign   the   service  with  the  pithy 

.  observation  that  an  officer  who  could  not  protect 

his  own  rights  was  unfit  to  be  trusted  with  those  of 

his  country.     It  did  not  prevent  his  winning  the 

61 


62  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

fight  at  Bennington,  though.  The  same  treatment 
caused  Daniel  Morgan  to  seek  that  retirement  from 
which  he  was  only  drawn  forth  by  his  country's 
peril  to  win  the  Battle  of  the  Cowpens.  And,  lastly, 
it  was  the  same  treatment  which,  in  part  at  least, 
made  Arnold  a  traitor.  Then,  as  ever,  Congress 
was  continually  meddling  with  matters  of  purely 
military  administration,  to  the  very  great  detriment 
of  the  service. 

Jones  has  been  censured  as  a  jealous  stickler  for 
rank,  a  quibbler  about  petty  distinctions  in  trying 
times.  Such  criticisms  proceed  from  ignorance.  If 
there  were  nothing  else,  rank  means  opportunity. 
The  range  of  prospective  enterprises  is  greater  the 
higher  the  rank.  The  little  Scotsman  was  properly 
tenacious  of  his  prerogatives — we  could  not  admire 
him  if  he  were  not  so— and  naturally  exasperated  by 
the  arbitrary  course  of  Congress,  against  which 
he  protested  with  all  the  vehemence  of  his  passion- 
ate, fiery,  and — it  must  be  confessed — somewhat  irri- 
table nature.  On  this  subject  he  thus  wrote  to  the 
Marine  Board  at  Philadelphia: 

"  I  am  now  to  inform  you  that  by  a  letter  from 
Commodore  Hopkins,  dated  on  board  the  Warren, 
January  14,  1777,  which  came  to  my  hands  a  day 
or  two  ago,  I  am  superseded  in  the  command  of  the 
Alfred,  in  favour  of  Captain  Hinrnan,  and  ordered 
back  to  the  sloop  in  Providence  River.  Whether 
this  order  doth  or  doth  not  supersede  also  your 
orders  to  me  of  the  loth  ult.  you  can  best  deter- 
mine ;  however,  as  I  undertook  the  late  expedition 
at  his  (Commodore  Hopkins')  request,  from  a  prin- 


SUPERSEDED   IN    RANK.  63 

ciple  of  humanity,  I  mean  not  now  to  make  a  dif- 
ficulty about  trifles,  especially  when  the  good  of 
the  service  is  to  be  consulted.  As  I  am  unconscious 
of  any  neglect  of  duty  or  misconduct,  since  my  ap- 
pointment at  the  first  as  eldest  lieutenant  of  the 
navy,  I  can  not  suppose  that  you  have  intended  to 
set  me  aside  in  favour  of  any  man  who  did  not  at 
that  time  bear  a  captain's  commission,  unless,  in- 
deed, that  man,  by  exerting  his  superior  abilities, 
hath  rendered  or  can  render  more  important  serv- 
ices to  America.  Those  who  stepped  forth  at  the 
first,  in  ships  altogether  unfit  for  war,  were  gen- 
erally considered  as  frantic  rather  than  wise  men, 
for  it  must  be  remembered  that  almost  everything 
then  made  against  them.  And  although  the  success 
in  the  affair  with  the  Glasgow  was  not  equal  to 
what  it  might  have  been,  yet  the  blame  ought  not 
to  be  general.  The  principal  or  principals  in  com- 
mand alone  are  culpable,  and  the  other  officers, 
while  they  stand  unimpeached,  have  their  full  merit. 
There  were,  it  is  true,  divers  persons,  from  misrep- 
resentation, put  into  commission  at  the  beginning, 
without  fit  qualification,  and  perhaps  the  number 
may  have  been  increased  by  later  appointments; 
but  it  follows  not  that  the  gentleman  or  man  of 
merit  should  be  neglected  or  overlooked  on  their 
account.  None  other  than  a  gentleman,  as  well  as 
a  seaman  both  in  theory  and  practice,  is  qualified 
to  support  the  character  of  a  commission  officer  in 
the  navy ;  nor  is  any  man  fit  to  command  a  ship  of 
war  who  is  not  also  capable  of  communicating  his 
ideas  on  paper,  in  language  that  becomes  his  rank. 
If  this  be  admitted,  the  foregoing  operations  will 


64  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

be  sufficiently  clear ;  but  if  further  proof  is  required 
it  can  easily  be  produced. 

"  When  I  entered  into  the  service  I  was  not 
actuated  by  motives  of  self-interest.  I  stepped  forth 
as  a  free  citizen  of  the  world,  in  defense  of  the  vio- 
lated rights  of  mankind,  and  not  in  search  of  riches, 
whereof,  I  thank  God,  I  inherit  a  sufficiency ;  but  I 
should  prove  my  degeneracy  were  I  not  in  the  high- 
est degree  tenacious  of  my  rank  and  seniority.  As 
a  gentleman  I  can  yield  this  point  up  only  to  per- 
sons of  superior  abilities  and  superior  merit,  and 
under  such  persons  it  would  be  my  highest  ambition 
to  learn.  As  this  is  the  first  time  of  my  having  ex- 
pressed the  least  anxiety  on  my  own  account,  I  must 
entreat  your  patience  until  I  account  to  you  for  the 
reason  which  hath  given  me  this  freedom  of  senti- 
ment. It  seems  that  Captain  Hinman's  commis- 
sion is  No.  i,  and  that,  in  consequence,  he  who 
was  at  first  my  junior  officer  by  eight,  hath  expressed 
himself  as  my  senior  officer  in  a  manner  which  doth 
himself  no  honour,  and  which  cloth  me  signal  in- 
jury. There  are  also  in  the  navy  persons  who  have 
not  shown  me  fair  play  after  the  service  I  have  ren- 
dered them.  I  have  even  been  blamed  for  the  civili- 
ties which  I  have  shown  to  my  prisoners,  at  the 
request  of  one  of  whom  I  herein  inclose  an  appeal, 
which  1  must  beg  leave  to  lay  before  Congress. 
Could  you  see  the  appellant's  accomplished  lady, 
and  the  innocents  their  children,  arguments  in  their 
behalf  would  be  unnecessary.  As  the  base-minded 
only  are  capable  of  inconsistencies,  you  will  not 
blame  my  free  soul,  which  cin  never  stoop  where  I 
can  not  also  esteem.  Could  I,  which  I  never  can, 


PROTESTS  VAINLY  AGAINST  THE  INJUSTICE.    65 

bear  to  be  superseded,  I  should  indeed  deserve  your 
contempt  and  total  neglect.  I  am  therefore  to  en- 
treat you  to  employ  me  in  the  most  enterprising  and 
active  service,  accountable  to  your  honourable  board 
only  for  my  conduct,  and  connected  as  much  as  pos- 
sible with  gentlemen  and  men  of  good  sense." 

The  letter  does  credit  to  his  head  and  heart  alike. 
Matter  and  manner  are  both  admirable.  In  it  he  is 
at  his  best,  and  one  paragraph  shows  that  the  gen- 
erous sympathy  he  ever  felt  for  a  prisoner  could 
even  be  extended  to  the  enemies  of  his  country,  so 
that  as  far  as  he  personally  was  concerned  they 
should  suffer  no  needless  hardship  in  captivity. 
Considered  as  the  production  of  a  man  whose  life 
from  boyhood  had  been  mainly  spent  upon  the  sea 
in  trading  ships  and  slavers,  with  their  limited  op- 
portunities for  polite  learning,  and  an  entire  absence 
of  that  refined  society  without  which  education 
rarely  rises  to  the  point  of  culture,  the  form  and 
substance  of  Jones'  letters  are  surprising.  Of  this 
and  of  most  of  the  letters  hereafter  to  be  quoted  only 
words  of  approbation  may  be  used.  A  just  yet 
modest  appreciation  of  his  own  dignity,  a  proper 
and  resolute  determination  to  maintain  it,  a  total 
failure  to  truckle  to  great  men,  an  absence  of  syc- 
ophancy and  hypocrisy,  a  clear  insight  into  the  re- 
quirements of  a  gentleman  and  an  effortless  rising 
to  his  own  high  standard  without  unpleasant  self- 
assertion,  are  found  in  his  correspondence.  Consid- 
ering the  humble  source  from  which  he  sprang,  his 
words,  written  and  spoken,  equally  with  his  deeds, 
indicate  his  rare  qualities. 


66  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

It  is  probable  that  no  disposition  existed  in  Con- 
gress to  do  him  an  injustice — quite  the  reverse,  in 
fact ;  but  the  claims  of  the  representatives  of  the 
several  States,  which  were  insistently  put  forth  in 
behalf  of  local  individuals  aspiring  to  naval  station 
from  the  various  colonies  in  which  the  different 
ships  were  building,  were  too  strong  to  be  disre- 
garded. The  central  administration  was  at  no  time 
sufficiently  firm  for  a  really  strong  government,  and 
conciliation  and  temporization  were  necessary.  It 
was  only  by  the  very  highest  quality  of  tact  that 
greater  difficulties  were  overcome,  and  that  more 
glaring  acts  of  injustice  were  not  perpetrated.  So 
sensible  w.ere  the  authorities  of  Jones'  conduct,  so 
valuable  had  been  his  services  on  his  last  two 
cruises,  that  while  they  were  unable  at  that  time, 
in  spite  of  his  protests,  to  restore  him  to  his  proper 
place  in  the  list,  as  a  concession  to  his  ability  and 
merit  orders  were  given  him  assigning  him  to  the 
command  of  the  squadron  consisting  of  the  Alfred, 
Columbus,  Cabot,  Hampden,  and  Providence,  to 
operate  against  Pensacola. 

This  was  virtually  creating  him  commander-in- 
chief  of  the  naval  forces,  for  outside  the  ships 
mentioned  there  were  but  few  others  worthy 
of  consideration.  Natural  jealousy  had,  how- 
ever, arisen  in  the  mind  of  Hopkins,  the  comman- 
der-in-chief,  at  being  thus  superseded  and  ignored 
through  one  of  his  own  subordinates  by  Con- 
gress, with  which  his  relations  had  become  so 
strained  that  he  affected  fo  disbelieve  the  validity 
of  the  order  assigning  Jones  to  this  duty,  and,  re- 
fusing to  comply  therewith,  retained  the  ships 


PROTESTS  VAINLY  AGAINST  THE  INJUSTICE.    67 

under   his   command.     The   matter   thereupon   fell 
through. 

Finding  all  efforts  to  secure  the  squadron  and 
carry  out  these  orders  fruitless,  Jones  journeyed  to 
Philadelphia  for  the  purpose  of  emphatically  plac- 
ing before  the  Marine  Committee  his  grievances. 
There  a  further  shock  awaited  him. 

"  My  conduct  hitherto,"  he  writes  on  this  sub- 
ject in  the  memorial  addressed  to  Congress  from  the 
Texel  years  after,  "  was  so  much  approved  of  by 
Congress  that  on  the  5th  of  February,  17/7,  I  was 
appointed,  with  unlimited  orders,  to  command  a 
little  squadron  of  the  Alfred,  Columbus,  Cabot, 
Hampden,  and  sloop  Providence.  Various  impor- 
tant services  were  pointed  out,  but  I  was  left  at  free 
liberty  to  make  my  election.  That  service,  however, 
did  not  take  place;  for  the  commodore,  who  had 
three  of  the  squadron  blocked  in  at  Providence, 
affected  to  disbelieve  my  appointment,  and  would 
not  at  last  give  me  the  necessary  assistance.  Find- 
ing that  he  trifled  with  my  applications  as  well  as 
the  orders  of  Congress,  I  undertook  a  journey  from 
Boston  to  Philadelphia,  in  order  to  explain  matters 
to  Congress  in  person.  I  took  this  step  also  be- 
cause Captain  Hinman  had  succeeded  me  in  the 
command  of  the  Alfred,  and,  of  course,  the  service 
could  not  suffer  through  my  absence.  I  arrived  at 
Philadelphia  in  the  beginning  of  April.  But  what 
was  my  surprise  to  find  that,  by  a  new  line  of  navy 
rank,  which  had  taken  place  on  the  loth  day  of 
October,  1776,  all  the  officers  that  had  stepped  forth 
at  the  beginning  were  superseded !  I  was  myself 


68  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

superseded  by  thirteen  men,  not  one  of  whom  did 
(and  perhaps  some  of  them  durst  not)  take  the  sea 
against  the  British  flag  at  the  first ;  for  several  of 
them  who  were  then  applied  to  refused  to  venture, 
and  none  of  them  has  since  been  very  happy  in 
proving  their  superior  abilities.  Among  these  thir- 
teen there  are  individuals  who  can  neither  pretend 
to  parts  nor  education,  and  with  whom,  as  a  private 
gentleman,  I  would  disdain  to  associate. 

"  I  leave  your  excellency  and  the  Congress  to 
judge  how  this  must  affect  a  man  of  honour  and 
sensibility. 

"  I  was  told  by  President  Hancock  that  what 
gave  me  so  much  pain  had  been  the  effect  of  a  mul- 
tiplicity of  business.  He  acknowledged  the  injus- 
tice of  that  regulation,  said  it  should  make  but  a 
nominal  and  temporary  difference,  and  that  in  the 
meantime  I  might  assure  myself  that  no  navy  offi- 
cer stood  higher  in  the  opinion  of  Congress  than, 
myself." 

The  complete  news  of  his  displacement  and 
supersession  in  rank  does  not  appear  to  have 
reached  him  before  this.  His  efforts  to  secure  the 
restoration  of  his  rank  proving  useless,  he  applied 
for  immediate  sea  duty.  The  next  attempt  on  the 
part  of  the  Marine  Committee  to  gratify  Jones's 
wish  for  active  service,  and  avail  themselves  of  his 
ability  at  the  same  time,  took  the  shape  of  a  resolu- 
tion of  Congress  authorizing  him  to  choose  the  best 
of  three  ships  which  it  was  proposed  to  purchase  in 
Boston,  which  he  was  to  command  until  some  better 
provision  could  be  made  for  him.  He  was  ordered 


SUGGESTS   NAVAL   REGULATIONS. 


69 


to  that  point  to  fit  out  the  ship.  During  this  period 
of  harassing  anxiety  he  gave  great  attention  to  for- 
mulating plans  and  making  suggestions  looking  to 
a  more  effective  organization  of  the  new  naval  estab- 
lishment. 

To  Robert  Morris,  chairman  of  the  committee, 
on  different  occasions,  he  communicated  his  views 
on  this  important  subject  in  a  series  of  valuable  let- 
ters, of  which  the  following  are  pertinent  extracts : 

"  As  the  regulations  of  the  navy  are  of  the  ut- 
most consequence,  you  will  not  think  me  presump- 
tuous, if,  with  the  utmost  diffidence,  I  venture  to 
communicate  to  you  such  hints  as,  in  my  judgment, 
will  promote  its  honor  and  good  government.  I 
could  heartily  wish  that  every  commissioned  officer 
were  to  be  previously  examined ;  for,  to  my  certain 
knowledge,  there  are  persons  who  have  already 
crept  into  commission  without  abilities  or  fit  quali- 
fications ;  I  am  myself  far  from  desiring  to  be  ex- 
cused. From  experience  in  ours,  as  well  as  from 
my  former  intimacy  with  many  officers  of  note  in 
the  British  navy,  I  am  convinced  that  the  parity  of 
rank  between  sea  and  land  or  marine  officers  is  of 
more  consequence  to  the  harmony  of  the  sea  service 
than  has  generally  been  imagined.  ...  I  propose 
not  our  enemies  as  an  example  for  our  general  imi- 
tation ;  yet,  as  their  navy  is  the  best  regulated  of 
any  in  the  world,  we  must,  in  some  degree,  imitate 
them,  and  aim  at  such  further  improvement  as  may 
one  day  make  ours  vie  with  and  exceed  theirs." 

With  regard  to  the  difficulty  of  recruiting  sea- 
men, some  of  whom,  finding  the  merchant  service  or 


70  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

coasting  trade  was  broken  up,  had  entered  the  army 
at  the  beginning  of  the  war,  while  many  more  had 
engaged  in  privateering — a  much  more  profitable 
vocation  than  the  regular  service — he  says : 

"  It  is  to  the  least  degree  distressing  to  contem- 
plate the  state  and  establishment  of  our  navy.  The 
common  class  of  mankind  are  actuated  by  no  nobler 
principle  than  that  of  self-interest ;  this,  and  this 
alone,  determines  all  adventurers  in  privateers — the 
owners,  as  well  as  those  whom  they  employ.  And 
while  this  is  the  case,  unless  the  private  emolument 
of  individuals  in  our  navy  is  made  superior  to  that 
in  privateers,  it  can  never  become  respectable,  it  will 
never  become  formidable.  And  without  a  respect- 
able navy — alas!  America.  In  the  present  critical 
situation  of  affairs  human  wisdom  can  suggest  no 
more  than  one  infallible  expedient :  enlist  the  sea- 
men during  pleasure,  and  give  them  all  the  prizes. 
What  is  the  paltry  emolument  of  two  thirds  of  prizes 
to  the  finances  of  this  vast  continent  ?  If  so  poor  a 
resource  is  essential  to  its  independence,  in  sober 
sadness  we  are  involved  in  a  woeful  predicament, 
and  our  ruin  is  fast  approaching.  The  situation  of 
America  is  new  in  the  annals  of  mankind ;  her 
affairs  cry  haste,  and  speed  must  answer  them. 
Trifles,  therefore,  ought  to  be  wholly  disregarded, 
as  being,  in  the  old  vulgar  proverb,  penny  wise  and 
pound  foolish.  If  our  enemies,  with  the  best  estab- 
lishment and  most  formidable  navy  in  the  universe, 
have  found  it  expedient  to  assign  all  prizes  to  the 
captors,  how  much  more  is  such  policy  essential  to 
our  infant  fleet!  But  I  need  use  no  arguments  to 


SUGGESTS   NAVAL   REGULATIONS.  71 

convince  you  of  the  necessity  of  making  the  emolu- 
ments of  our  navy  equal,  if  not  superior,  to  theirs. 
We  have  had  proof  that  a  navy  may  be  officered 
on  almost  any  terms,  but  we  are  not  so  sure  that 
these  officers  are  equal  to  their  commissions ;  nor 
will  the  Congress  ever  obtain  such  certainty  until 
they  in  their  wisdom  see  proper  to  appoint  a  board 
of  admiralty  competent  to  determine  impartially  the 
respective  merits  and  abilities  of  their  officers,  and 
to  superintend,  regulate,  and  point  out  all  the  mo- 
tions and  operations  of  the  navy." 

In  another  letter  to  Robert  Morris  he  writes : 

''  There  are  no  officers  more  immediately  wanted 
in  the  marine  department  than  commissioners  of 
dockyards,  to  superintend  the  building  and  outfits 
of  all  ships  of  war ;  with  power  to  appoint  deputies, 
to  provide,  and  have  in  constant  readiness,  sufficient 
quantities  of  provisions,  stores,  and  slops,  so  that 
the  small  number  of  ships  we  have  may  be  con- 
stantly employed,  and  not  continue  idle,  as  they  do  at 
present.  Besides  all  the  advantages  that  would  arise 
from  such  appointments,  the  saving  which  would 
accrue  to  the  continent  is  worth  attending  to.  Had 
such  men  been  appointed  at  the  first,  the  new  ships 
might  have  been  at  sea  long  ago.  The  difficulty  now 
lies  in  finding  men  who  are  deserving,  and  who  are 
fitly  qualified  for  an  office  of  such  importance." 

We  are  surprised  at  the  clear  insight  of  this  un- 
trained, inexperienced  Scotsman,  whom,  by  the  way, 
I  shall  hereafter  call  an  American.  Most  of  his 
recommendations  have  long  since  been  adopted  in 


72  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

our  own  navy  and  other  navies  of  the  world.  His 
conclusions  are  the  results  of  his  long  and  thorough 
professional  study,  his  habits  of  application,  his 
power  of  comprehension  and  faculty  of  clear  and 
explicit  statement.  His  observations  would  do 
credit  to  the  most  trained  observer  with  large  ex- 
perience back  of  his  observation. 

Another  curious  letter  to  a  former  friend  on  the 
island  of  Tobago,  written  at  this  time,  which  deals 
with  certain  investments  in  property  with  balances 
due  him  from  his  various  trading  ventures,  contains 
the  following  statement : 

"  As  I  hope  my  dear  mother  is  still  alive,  I  must 
inform  you  that  I  wish  my  property  in  Tobago,  or  in 
England,  after  paying  my  just  debts,  to  be  applied 
for  her  support.  Your  own  feelings,  my  dear  sir, 
make  it  unnecessary  for  me  to  use  arguments  to 
prevail  with  you  on  this  tender  point.  Any  remit- 
tances which  you  may  be  enabled  to  make,  through 
the  hands  of  my  good  friend  Captain  John  Plainer, 
of  Cork,  will  be  faithfully  put  into  her  hands ;  she 
hath  several  orphan  grandchildren  to  provide  for." 

All  of  which  plainly  indicates  that,  though  a  citi- 
zen of  another  country  and  the  bearer  of  another 
name,  he  still  retained  those  natural  feelings  of  affec- 
tion which  his  enemies  would  fain  persuade  us  were 
not  in  his  being. 

While  waiting  at  Boston  for  the  purchase  of  the 
ships  referred  to,  he  was  selected  by  Congress  to 
command  a  heavy  ship  of  war,  a  frigate  to  be  called 
the  Indien,  then  building  at  Amsterdam,  which  un- 
doubtedly would  be  the  most  formidable  vessel  in 


ORDERED   TO   THE   AMPHITRITE.  73 

the  American  service.  This  would  be  not  only  a 
just  tribute  to  his  merit,  but  would  also  solve  the 
difficulty  about  relative  rank,  for  he  would  be  the 
highest  ranking  officer  in  Continental  waters,  and 
there  could  be  no  conflict  of  authority.  He  was 
directed  to  proceed  at  once  to  Europe  to  take  com- 
mand of  this  ship.  The  Marine  Committee  sent  the 
following  letter,  addressed  to  the  commissioners  of 
the  United  States  in  Europe,  to  Paul  Jones,  for  him 
to  present  to  them  on  his  arrival  in  France : 

"  PHILADELPHIA,  May  9,  7777. 

"  HONOURABLE  GENTLEMEN  :  This  letter  is  in- 
tended to  be  delivered  to  you  by  John  Paul  Jones, 
Esquire,  an  active  and  brave  commander  in  our 
navy,  who  has  already  performed  signal  services  in 
vessels  of  little  force;  and,  in  reward  for  his  zeal, 
we  have  directed  him  to  go  on  board  the  Amphitrite, 
a  French  ship  of  twenty  guns,  that  brought  in  a  valu- 
able cargo  of  stores  from  Messrs.  Hortalez  &  Co.,* 
and  with  her  to  repair  to  France.  He  takes  with 
him  his  commission,  and  some  officers  and  men,  so 
that  we  hope  he  will,  under  that  sanction,  make  some 
good  prizes  with  the  Amphitrite ;  but  our  design 
of  sending  him  is,  with  the  approbation  of  Congress, 
that  you  may  purchase  one  of  those  fine  frigates  that 
Mr.  Deane  writes  us  you  can  get,  and  invest  him 
with  the  command  thereof  as  soon  as  possible.  We 
hope  you  may  not  delay  this  business  one  moment, 
but  purchase,  in  such  port  or  place  in  Europe  as  it 
can  be  .done  with  most  convenience  and  dispatch,  a 

*  A  fictitious  house,  under  the  name  of  which  the  com- 
missioners sent  out  military  stores. 


74  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

fine,  fast-sailing  frigate,  or. larger  ship.  Direct  Cap- 
tain Jones  where  he  must  repair  to,  and  he  will  take 
with  him  his  officers  and  men  toward  manning  her. 
You  will  assign  him  some  good  house  or  agent,  to 
supply  him  with  everything  necessary,  to  get  the 
ship  speedily  and  well  equipped  and  manned ;  some- 
body that  will  bestir  himself  vigorously  in  the  busi- 
ness, and  never  quit  it  until  it  is  accomplished. 

"  If  you  have  any  plan  or  service  to  be  per- 
formed in  Europe  by  such  a  ship,  that  you  think  will 
be  more  for  the  interest  and  honour  of  the  States 
than  sending  her  out  directly,  Captain  Jones  is  in- 
structed to  obey  your  orders;  and,  to  save  repeti- 
tion, let  him  lay  before  you  the  instructions  we  have 
given  him,  and  furnish  you  with  a  copy  thereof. 
You  can  then  judge  what  will  be  necessary  for  you 
to  direct  him  in ;  and  whatever  you  do  will  be  ap- 
proved, as  it  will  undoubtedly  tend  to  promote  the 
public  service  of  this  country. 

"  You  see  by  this  step  how  much  dependence 
Congress  places  in  your  advices ;  and  you  must 
make  it  a  point  not  to  disappoint  Captain  Jones' 
wishes  and  expectations  on  this  occasion. 

At  the  same  time  the  committee  sent  the  follow- 
ing letter  to  Jones  himself : 

"  PHILADELPHIA,  May  g,  7777. 

"  SIR  :  Congress  have  thought  proper  to  author- 
ize the  Secret  Committee  to  employ  you  on  a  voy- 
age in  the  Amphitrite,  from  Portsmouth  to  Carolina 
and  France,  where  it  is  expected  you  will  be  pro- 
vided with  a  fine  frigate ;  and  as  your  present  com- 
mission is  for  the  command  of  a  particular  ship,  we 


ORDERED  TO  COMMAND  THE  RANGER. 


75 


now  send  you  a  new  one,  whereby  you  are  appointed 
a  captain  in  our  navy,  and  of  course  may  com- 
mand any  ship  in  the  service  to  which  you  are  par- 
ticularly ordered.  You  are  to  obey  the  orders  of  the 
Secret  Committee,  and  we  are,  sir,  etc." 

The  Amphitrite,  which  was  to  carry  out  Jones 
and  the  other  officers  and  seamen  to  man  the  pro- 
posed frigate,  was  an  armed  merchantman.  The 
French  commander  of  the  Amphitrite,  however, 
made  great  difficulty  with  regard  to  surrendering  his 
command  to  Jones,  and  even  to  receiving  him  and 
his  men  on  board  the  ship,  and  through  his  persist- 
ent and  vehement  objections  this  promising  ar- 
rangement likewise  fell  through.  Jones  continued 
his  importunities  for  a  command,  however,  his  de- 
sire being  then,  as  always,  for  active  service.  Final- 
ly, by  the  following  resolutions  passed  by  Congress 
on  the  1 4th  of  June,  he  was  appointed  to  the  sloop 
of  war  Ranger,  then  nearing  completion  at  Ports- 
mouth, New  Hampshire : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  flag  of  the  thirteen  United 
States  be  thirteen  stripes,  alternate  red  and  white; 
that  the  union  be  thirteen  stars,  white  in  a  blue  field, 
representing  a  new  constellation. 

"  Resolved,  That  Captain  Paul  Jones  be  appointed 
to  command  the  ship  Ranger. 

"  Resolved,  That  William  Whipple,  Esquire, 
member  of  Congress  and  of  the  Marine  Committee, 
John  Langdon,  Esquire,  Continental  agent,  and  the 
said  John  Paul  Jones  be  authorized  to  appoint  lieu- 
tenants and  other  commissioned  and  warrant  officers 
necessary  for  the  said  ship ;  and  that  blank  commis- 


76  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

sions  and  warrants  be  sent  them,  to  be  filled  up 
with  the  names  of  the  persons  they  appoint,  returns 
whereof  to  be  made  to  the  navy  board  in  the  Eastern 
Department." 

At  last,  having  received  something  tangible,  he 
hastened  to  Portsmouth  as  soon  as  his  orders  were 
delivered  to  him,  and  assumed  the  command.  It  is 
claimed,  perhaps  with  justice,  that  his  hand  was 
the  first  to  hoist  the  new  flag  of  the  Republic,  the 
Stars  and  Stripes,  to  the  masthead  of  a  war  ship,  as 
it  had  been  the  first  to  hoist  the  first  flag  of  any  sort 
at  the  masthead  of  the  Alfred,  not  quite  two  years 
before.  The  date  of  this  striking  event  is  not  known. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  the  conjunction  of  Jones 
with  the  flag  in  this  resolution ;  an  association  justi- 
fied by  his  past,  and  to  be  further  justified  by  his 
future,  conduct,  and  by  the  curious  relationship  in 
which  he  was  brought  to  the  colors  of  the  United 
States  by  his  opportune  action  upon  various  occa- 
sions. The  name  of  no  other  man  is  so  associated 
with  our  flag  as  is  his. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE  FIRST  CRUISE  OF  THE  RANGER — SALUTE  TO  THE 
AMERICAN    FLAG. 

IN  spite  of  the  most  assiduous  effort  on  the  part 
of  Jones,  he  was  unable  to  get  the  Ranger  ready  for 
sea  before  October,  and  the  following  extract  from 
another  letter  to  the  Marine  Committee  shows  the 
difficulties  under  which  he  labored,  and  the  inade- 
quate equipment  and  outfit  with  which  he  finally 
sailed. 

"  With  all  my  industry  I  could  not  get  the  single 
suit  of  sails  completed  until  the  2Oth  current.  Since 
that  time  the  winds  and  weather  have  laid  me  under 
the  necessity  of  continuing  in  port.  At  this  time 
it  blows  a  very  heavy  gale  from  the  northeast.  The 
ship  with  difficulty  rides  it  out,  with  yards  and  top- 
masts struck,  and  whole  cables  ahead.  When  it 
clears  up  I  expect  the  wind  from  the  northwest,  and 
shall  not  fail  to  embrace  it,  although  I  have  not  a 
spare  sail  nor  materials  to  make  one.  Some  of  those 
I  have  are  made  of  hissings.*  I  never  before  had 
so  disagreeable  service  to  perform  as  that  which  I 

*  A  coarse  thin  stuff,  a  very  poor  substitute  for  the  ordi- 
nary canvas. 

77 


78  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

have  now  accomplished,  and  of  which  another  will 
claim  the  credit  as  well  as  the  profit.  However,  in 
doing  my  utmost,  I  am  sensible  that  I  have  done  no 
more  than  my  duty." 

The  instructions  under  which  Jones  sailed  for 
Europe  are  outlined  in  the  following  orders  from  the 
Marine'  Committee : 

"  As  soon  as  these  instructions  get  to  hand  you 
are  to  make  immediate  application  to  the  proper 
persons  to  get  your  vessel  victualed  and  fitted  for 
sea  with  all  expedition.  When  this  is  done  you  are 
to  proceed  on  a  voyage  to  some  convenient  port  in 
France ;  on  your  arrival  there,  apply  to  the  agent,  if 
any,  in  or  near  said  port,  for  such  supplies  as  you 
may  stand  in  need  of.  You  are  at  the  same  time  to 
give  immediate  notice,  by  letter,  to  the  Honourable 
Benjamin  Franklin,  Silas  Deane,  and  Arthur  Lee, 
Esquires,  or  any  of  them  at  Paris,  of  your  arrival, 
requesting  their  instructions  as  to  your  further  des- 
tination, which  instructions  you  are  to  obey  as  far 
as  it  shall  be  in  your  power. 

"  You  are  to  take  particular  notice  that  while  on 
the  coast  of  France,  or  in  a  French  port,  you  are,  as 
much  as  you  conveniently  can,  to  keep  your  guns 
covered  and  concealed,  and  to  make  as  little  war- 
like appearance  as  possible." 

In  the  original  plan  the  ship  was  heavily  over- 
armed,  being  pierced  for  twenty-six  guns.  Consid- 
ering her  size  and  slight  construction,  Jones  exer- 
cised his  usual  good"  judgment  by  refusing  to  take 
more  than  eighteen"  gnns,  the  ordinary  complement 


THE    FIRST   CRUISE   OF   THE    RANGER. 


79 


for  a  ship  of  her  class.  These  were  6-pounders 
manufactured  in  the  United  States  and  ill  propor- 
tioned, being  several  calibres  short  in  the  length  of 
the  barrel,  according  to  a  statement  of  the  captain — 
a  most  serious  defect.  To  all  these  disabilities  was 
added  an  inefficient  and  insubordinate  first  lieu- 
tenant named  Simpson,  who  probably  had  been  ap- 
pointed to  this  responsible  position  on  account  of 
the  considerable  family  influence  which  was  back 
of  him.  •  He  was  related  to  the  Hancocks  among 
others.  The  crew  was  a  fair  one,  but  was  spoiled 
eventually  by  the  example  of  Simpson  and  other 
officers.  On  the  first  of  November,  1777,  the  im- 
perfectly provided  Ranger  took  her  departure  from 
Portsmouth  bound  for  Europe.  Her  captain  la- 
ments the  fact  that  she  had  but  thirty  gallons  of 
rum  aboard  for  the  men  to  drink,  a  serious  defect  in 
those  grog-serving  days.  Before  sailing,  Jones  made 
large  advances  from  his  private  funds  to  the  men, 
the  Government  being  already  in  his  debt  to  the 
amount  of  fifteen  hundred  pounds,  for  previous  ad- 
vances to  the  men  of  the  Alfred  and  the  Provi- 
dence. None  of  these  advances  were  repaid  until 
years  after.  These  facts  are  evidence,  by  the  way, 
that  he  had  finally  realized  considerable  sums  of 
money  from  his  brother's  estate,  for  he  had  no 
other  financial  resource  save  his  West  Indian 
investments,  which  were  worth  nothing  to  him  at 
this  time. 

Wickes,  Johnston,  and  Cunningham,  in  the  Re- 
prisal, Lexington,  Surprise,  and  Revenge,  insig- 
nificant vessels  of  inferior  force,  had  by  their  bril- 
liant and  successful  cruising  in  the  English  Chan- 


8o  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

nel  demonstrated  the  possibility  of  operations 
against  British  commerce  in  that  supposedly  safe 
quarter  of  the  ocean.  Paul  Jones  was  now  to  under- 
take, upon  a  larger  scale,  similar  operations  with 
much  more  astounding  results. 

On  the  way  over,  two  prizes,  both  brigantines, 
laden  with  wine  and  fruit,  were  captured.  Nearing 
the  other  side,  the  Ranger  fell  in  with  ten  sail  of  mer- 
chantmen from  the  Mediterranean,  under  convoy  of 
the  line  of  battle  ship  Invincible,  74.  Jones  made 
strenuous  efforts  to  cut  out  one  of  the  convoy,  but 
they  clung  so  closely  to  the  line  of  battle  ship  that 
he  found  it  impossible  to  bring  about  his  design, 
though  he  remained  in  sight  of  the  convoy  during 
one  whole  day.  Had  the  Ranger  been  swifter  or 
handier,  he  might  have  effected  something,  but  she 
was  very  crank  and  slow  as  well. 

On  the  2d  of  December  the  sloop  of  war  dropped 
anchor  in  the  harbor  of  Nantes.  Jones  sent  his  let- 
ters and  instructions  to  the  commissioners,  and  had 
the  pleasure  of  confirming  to  them  the  news  of  the 
surrender  of  Burgoyne  and  his  army,  which  was 
probably  the  most  important  factor  in  bringing 
about  the  subsequent  alliance  between  America  and 
France.  While  awaiting  a  reply  to  his  letters  he 
busied  himself  in  repairing  the  defects  and  weak- 
nesses of  his  ship  so  far  as  his  limited  means  per- 
mitted. Her  trim  was  altered,  ballast  restowed,  and 
a  large  quantity  of  lead  taken  on  board ;  the  lower 
masts  were  shortened  several  feet,  and  every  other 
change  which  his  skill  and  experience  dictated  was 
made  on  the  ship.  The  results  greatly  conduced  to 
her  efficiency.  It  may  be  stated  here  that  Jones  was 


THE    FIRST   CRUISE   OF   THE    RANGER.        8 1 

a  thorough  and  accomplished  seaman,  and  no  man 
was  capable  of  getting  more  out  of  a  ship  than  he. 
From  a  slow,  crank,  unwieldy  vessel  he  developed 
the  sloop  of  war  into  a  handy,  amenable  ship,  and 
very  much  increased  her  speed. 

In  January,  1778,  in  obedience  to  instructions 
from  the  commissioners,  he  visited  them  in  Paris 
and  explained  to  them  in  detail  his  proposed  plan 
of  action.  Alone  among  the  naval  commanders  of 
his  day  does  he  appear  to  have  appreciated  that  com- 
merce destroying  can  be  best  carried  on  and  the 
enemy  most  injured  by  concentrated  attacks  by  mo- 
bile and  efficient  force  upon  large  bodies  of  shipping 
in  harbors  and  home  ports,  rather  than  by  sporadic 
cruising  in  more  or  less  frequented  seas.  He  had 
come  across  with  the  hope  of  taking  command  of 
the  fine  frigate  Indien,  then  building  in  Holland,  and 
then,  with  the  Ranger  and  such  other  ships  as  might 
be  procured,  carrying  out  his  ideas  by  a  series  of 
bold  descents  upon  the  English  coasts.  But  while 
the  ministers  of  the  King  of  France  were  hesitating, 
or  perhaps  better  perfecting  their  plans  preparatory 
to  announcing  an  alliance  offensive  and  defensive 
with  this  country,  it  was  deemed  of  the  utmost  im- 
portance that  no  occasion  should  be  given  the  Brit- 
ish which  would  enable  them  unduly  to  hasten  the 
course  of  events.  The  suspicion  of  the  British  Gov- 
ernment was  aroused  with  respect  to  the  Indien, 
however,  and  it  was  thought  best,  under  the  cir- 
cumstances, to  pretend  that  she  was  being  made  for 
the  Government  of  France,  with  which  England  was 
then  nominally  at  peace.  In  any  event,  work  upon 
her  had  been  so  delayed  that  she  was  very  far  from 
7 


82  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

completion,  and  would  not  have  been  available  for 
months. 

Thus  was  Jones  deprived  of  the  enjoyment  of 
this  command,  to  his  great  personal  regret,  to  the 
disarrangement  of  his  plans,  and  to  the  detriment  of 
the  cause  he  was  so  gallantly  to  support.  There 
was  no  other  ship  nor  were  any  smaller  vessels  then 
available  for  him,  and  he  was  therefore  of  necessity 
continued  in  the  command  of  the  Ranger. 

This  in  itself  was  annoying,  and  produced  a  se- 
quence of  events  of  a  most  unfortunate  character. 
Lieutenant  Simpson  had  been  promised  the  com- 
mand of  the  Ranger  when  Jones  took  over  the  In- 
dien,  and  the  failure  to  keep  this  promise  entailed  by 
the  circumstances  mentioned,  embittered  Simpson 
to  such  a  degree  that  his  efficiency — never  of  the 
first  order — was  greatly  impaired,  and  so  long  as  he 
remained  under  the  command  of  Jones  he  was  a 
smoldering  brand  of  discontent  and  disobedience. 

On  the  loth  of  January  Jones,  who  had  rejoined 
his  ship,  wrote  at  great  length  to  Silas  Deane,  one 
of  the  commissioners,  suggesting  a  plan  whereby, 
in  case  the  proposed  alliance  between  France  and 
the  rebellious  colonies  were  consummated,  a  mag- 
nificent blow  might  be  struck  against  England,  and 
the  cause  of  the  Revolution  thereby  greatly  fur- 
thered. He  urged  that  Admiral  D'Estaing  should 
be  dispatched  with  a  great  fleet  to  pen  up  and  cap- 
ture Lord  Howe,  then  operating  in  the  Delaware 
with  an  inferior  fleet.  There  is  no  doubt  that  this 
conception  was  essentially  sound,  and  if  he  himself 
could  have  been  intrusted  with  the  carrying  out  of 
the  plan  the  results  would  have  been  most  happy ; 


A   BOLD   PLAN.  83 

but,  in  order  to  effect  anything,  in  peace  or  war, 
prompt  action  is  as  necessary  as  careful  planning 
and  wise  decision. 

When  the  French  did  finally  adopt  the  plan  they 
found  that  their  dilatory  proceedings,  their  failure 
to  take  immediate  advantage  of  past  preparation, 
and  their  substitution  of  Toulon  for  Brest  as  a  naval 
point  of  departure,  doomed  the  enterprise  to  failure. 
Lord  Howe,  hearing  of  the  attempt,  and  realizing 
his  precarious  and  indefensive  position  in  the  Dela- 
ware, made  haste  to  return  to  his  old  anchorage  in 
New  York.  When  D'Estaing,  urged  by  Washing- 
ton, arrived  off  the  harbor,  he  was  deterred  from 
attacking  Lord  Howe's  inferior  force  by  the  rep- 
resentations of  the  pilots,  who  stated  that  there  was 
not  enough  water  on  the  bar  for  the  greater  ships 
of  the  line.  While,  therefore,  Jones'  suggestion 
came  to  nothing,  it  is  interesting  and  instructive  to 
contemplate  this  project  of»his  fertile  brain.  An- 
other enterprise  proposed  by  him  involved  an  ex- 
pedition to  take  the  island  of  St.  Helena,  and  with 
it  as  a  base  of  attack  attempt  the  capture  of  the 
numerous  Indiameri  which  either  stopped  at  James- 
town or  passed  near  the  island.  This  too  was  un- 
heeded. 

While  these  matters  were  under  consideration,  the 
Ranger  sailed  from  Nantes  to  Quiberon  Bay  early 
in  February,  1778,  having  under  convoy  several 
American  trading  ships  which  were  desirous  of  join- 
ing a  great  fleet  of  merchant  vessels  assembling  at 
that  point.  These  vessels  were  to  be  convoyed  past 
Cape  Finisterre  on  their  way  across  the  Atlantic  by 
a  heavy  French  squadron  of  five  line  of  battle  ships 


84  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

and  several  frigates  and  sloops  under  the  command 
of  La  Motte  Piquet. 

On  the  1 3th  of  February  the  Ranger  hove  to 
off  the  bay.  The  wind  was  blowing  furiously,  as  it 
frequently  does  on  the  rocky  confines  of  that  bold 
shore,  off  which  a  few  years  before  the  great  Lord 
Hawke  had  signally  defeated  Conflans ;  but,  instead 
of  running  to  an  anchorage  immediately,  Jones  sent 
a  boat  ashore,  and  through  the  American  resident 
agent  communicated  to  the  French  commander  his 
intention  of  entering  the  bay  the  next  day  and  salut- 
ing him ;  asking,  as  was  customary,  that  the  salute 
be  returned.  The  French  admiral  courteously  re- 
plied that  he  would  return  four  guns  less  than  the 
number  he  received,  his  instructions  being  to  that 
effect,  and  in  accordance  with  the  custom  of  his 
navy  when  an  interchange  of  sea  courtesies  took 
place  between  the  fleets  of  France  and  those  of  a 
republic.  This  was  not  satisfactory  to  the  doughty 
American,  and  he  addressed  the  following  letter  to 
the  American  agent  for  the  French  commander : 

' '  February  14,  1778. 

"  DEAR  SIR  :  I  am  extremely  sorry  to  give  you 
fresh  trouble,  but  I  think  the  admiral's  answer  of 
yesterday  requires  an  explanation.  The  haughty 
English  return  gun  for  gun  to  foreign  officers  of 
equal  rank,  and  two  less  only  to  captains  by  flag 
officers.  It  is  true,  my  command  at  present  is  not 
important,  yet,  as  the  senior  American  officer  at 
present  in  Europe,  it  is  my  duty  to  claim  an  equal 
return  of  respect  to  the  flag  of  the  United  States  that 
would  be  shown  to  any  other  flag  whatever. 


SALUTE   TO   THE   AMERICAN    FLAG.  85 

"  I  therefore  take  the  liberty  of  inclosing  an 
appointment,  perhaps  as  respectable  as  any  which 
the  French  admiral  can  produce ;  besides  which,  I 
have  others  in  my  possession. 

"  If,  however,  he  persists  in  refusing  to  return 
an  equal  salute,  I  will  accept  of  two  guns  less,  as  I 
have  not  the  rank  of  admiral. 

"  It  is  my  opinion  that  he  would  return  four  less 
to  a  privateer  or  a  merchant  ship ;  therefore,  as  I 
have  been  honoured  oftener  than  once  with  a  chief 
command  of  ships  of  war,  I  can  not  in  honour  ac- 
cept of  the  same  terms  of  respect. 

"  You  will  singularly  oblige  me  by  waiting  upon 
the  admiral ;  and  I  ardently  hope  you  will  succeed 
in  the  application,  else  I  shall  be  under  a  necessity 
of  departing  without  coming  into  the  bay. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  etc. 
"  To  WILLIAM  CARMICHAEL,  ESQ. 

"  N.  B. — Though  thirteen  guns  is  your  greatest 
salute  in  America,  yet  if  the  French  admiral  should 
prefer  a  greater  number  he  has  his  choice  on  con- 
ditions." 

A  great  stickler  for  his  rights  and  for  all  the 
prerogatives  of  his  station  was  John  Paul  Jones.  In 
this  instance  he  was  maintaining  the  dignity  of  the 
United  States  by  insisting  upon  a  proper  recogni- 
tion of  his  command. 

However,  having  learned  afterward  that  the  con- 
tention of  the  French  admiral  was  correct,  Jones  de- 
termined to  accept  the  indicated  return,  realizing 
with  his  usual  keenness  that  the  gist  of  the  matter 
lay  in  receiving  any  salute  rather  than  in  the  number 


86  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

of  guns  which  it  comprised ;  so  the  Ranger  got  under 
way  late  in  the  evening  of  the  I4th,  and  beat  in 
toward  the  harbor.  It  was  almost  dark  when  she 
drew  abreast  the  great  French  flagship.  Backing 
his  main-topsail,  the  6-pounders  on  the  main  deck 
of  the  Ranger  barked  out  their  salute  of  thirteen 
guns,  which  was  promptly  returned  by  the  French 
commander  with  nine  heavy  guns  from  the  battle 
ship. 

It  was  the  first  time  the  Stars  and  Stripes  had 
been  saluted  on  the  high  seas.  It  was,  in  fact,  the 
first  official  recognition  of  the  existence  of  this  new 
power  by  the  authorized  military  representatives  of 
any  civilized  nation.  A  Dutch  governor  of  St.  Eu- 
statius,  a  year  before,  had  saluted  an  American 
ensign — not  the  Stars  and  Stripes,  of  course — on  one 
of  our  cruisers,  but  the  act  had  been  disavowed  and 
the  governor  promptly  recalled  for  his  presumption. 

As  this  little  transaction  between  Paul  Jones  and 
La  Motte  Piquet  had  occurred  so  late  at  night,  the 
American  sent  word  to  the  Frenchman  that  he  pro- 
posed to  sail  through  his  line  in  broad  daylight  on 
the  morrow,  with  the  brig  Independence,  a  privateer 
temporarily  attached  to  his  command,  and  salute 
him  in  the  open  light  of  day.  With  great  good 
humor  and  complaisance,  La  Motte  Piquet  again 
expressed  his  intention  of  responding.  Accordingly, 
the  next  morning,  Jones  repaired  on  board  the  In- 
dependence, which  had  been  lying  to  during  the 
night  outside  of  signal  distance,  and,  having  made 
everything  as  smart  and  as  shipshape  as  possible 
on  the  little  vessel,  with  the  newest  and  brightest  of 
American  ensigns  flying  from  every  masthead,  the 


SALUTE   TO    THE   AMERICAN    FLAG.  87 

little  brig  sailed  past  the  towering  walls  of  the  great 
ships  of  the  line,  saluting  and  receiving  their  reply. 
There  were  no  doubts  in  any  one's  mind  as  to  the 
reality  of  the  salute  to  the  flag  after  that ! 

It  must  have  been  a  proud  moment  for  the  man 
who  had  hoisted  the  pine-tree  flag  for  the  first  time 
on  the  Alfred ;  for  the  man  who  had  been  the  first 
officer  of  the  American  navy  to  receive  promotion ; 
for  the  man  who  had  first  flung  the  Stars  and  Stripes 
to  the  breeze  from  the  masthead  of  a  ship ;  for  the 
man  who,  in  his  little  vessel,  trifling  and  inconsider- 
able as  she  was,  was  yet  about  to  maintain  the 
honor  of  that  flag  with  unexampled  heroism  in  the 
home  waters  and  in  the  presence  of  the  proudest, 
most  splendid,  and  most  efficient  navy  of  the  world. 
That  1 5th  of  February,  that  bright,  cold,  clear  winter 
morning,  is  one  of  the  memorable  anniversaries  in 
the  history  of  our  nation. 

Writing  to  the  Marine  Committee  on  the  22d  of 
February,  1778,  he  says: 

"  I  am  happy  in  having  it  in  my  power  to  con- 
gratulate you  on  my  having  seen  the  American  flag 
for  the  first  time  recognized  in  the  fullest  and  com- 
pletest  manner  by  the  flag  of  France.  I  was  off 
their  bay  the  I3th  instant,  and  sent  my  boat  in  the 
next  day,  to  know  if  the  admiral  would  return  my 
salute.  He  answered  that  he  would  return  to  me, 
as  the  senior  American  Continental  officer  in  Eu- 
rope, the  same  salute  which  he  was  authorized  by 
his  court  to  return  to  an  admiral  of  Holland,  or  any 
other  republic,  which  was  four  guns  less  than  £he 
galute  given.  I  hesitated  at  this,  for  I  demande4 


88  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

gun  for  gun.  Therefore  I  anchored  in  the  entrance 
of  the  bay,  at  a  distance  from  the  French  fleet ;  but, 
after  a"  very  particular  inquiry  on  the  14th,  finding 
that  he  had  really  told  the  truth,  I  was  induced  to 
accept  of  his  offer,  the  more  so  as  it  was,  in  fact,  an 
acknowledgment  of  American  independence.  The 
wind  being  contrary  and  blowing  hard,  it  was  after 
sunset  before  the  Ranger  got  near  enough  to  salute 
La  Motte  Piquet  with  thirteen  guns,  which  he  re- 
turned with  nine.  However,  to  put  the  matter  be- 
yond a  doubt,  I  did  not  suffer  the  Independence  to 
salute  till  next  morning,  when  I  sent  the  admiral 
word  that  I  would  sail  through  his  fleet  in  the  brig, 
and  would  salute  him  in  open  day.  He  was  exceed- 
ingly pleased,  and  he  returned  the  compliment  also 
with  nine  guns." 

The  much-talked-of  treaty  of  alliance  between 
France  and  the  United  States  had  been  secretly 
signed  six  days  before,  but  neither  of  the  partici- 
pants of  this  interchange  of  sea  courtesies  was  then 
aware  of  this  fact.  Having  discharged  his  duties 
by  placing  the  merchant  ships  he  had  convoyed  un- 
der La  Motte  Piquet's  command,  Jones  left  Qui- 
beron  Bay  and  went  to  Brest,  where  there  was  as- 
sembled a  great  French  fleet  under  the  famous 
Comte  D'Orvilliers.  Jones  had  the  pleasure  of 
again  receiving,  by  the  courtesy  of  that  gallant 
officer,  a  reply  to  the  Ranger's  salute  from  the  great 
guns  of  the  flagship  La  Bretagne. 

The  Frenchman,  whose  acquaintance  Jones 
promptly  made,  was  much  attracted  by  his  daring 
and  ingenuous  personality,  and,  having  been  advised 


SALUTE   TO   THE   AMERICAN    FLAG.  89 

of  the  disappointment  caused  by  the  loss  of  the  In- 
dien,  he  offered  to  procure  him  a  commission  as  a 
captain  in  the  French  navy  and  assign  him  to  a 
heavy  frigate  instead  of  the  petty  sloop  of  war  at 
present  under  his  command — an  unprecedented 
honor.  Had  Jones  been  the  mere  soldier  of  fortune 
which  his  enemies  have  endeavored  to  maintain  he 
was,  this  brilliant  offer  would  have  met  with  a  ready 
acceptance.  The  French  marine,  through  the 
strenuous  efforts  of  the  king  and  his  ministers,  was 
then  in  a  most  flourishing  condition.  The  terrific 
defeats  at  the  close  of  the  century  and  the  beginning 
of  the  next  were  still  in  the  womb  of  events  and 
had  not  been  brought  forth,  and  the  prospects  of 
its  success  were  exceedingly  brilliant.  With  the 
backing  of  D'Orvilliers  and  his  own  capacity,  speedy 
promotion  and  advancement  might  easily  be  pre- 
dicted for  the  American.  He  refused  decisively  to 
accept  the  flattering  offer,  and  remained  with  the 
Ranger. 

On  the  loth  of  April,  having  done  what  he  could 
to  put  the  ship  in  efficient  trim,  he  sailed  from  Brest 
under  the  following  orders  : 

"  PARIS,  January  f6,  1778. 

"  SIR  :  As  it  is  not  in  our  power  to  procure  you 
such  a  ship  ?s  you  expected,  we  advise  you,  after 
equipping  the  Ranger  in  the  best  manner  for  the 
cruise  you  propose,  that  you  proceed  with  her  in 
the  manner  you  shall  judge  best  for  distressing  the 
enemies  of  the  United  States,  by  sea  or  otherwise, 
consistent  with  the  laws  of  war  and  the  terms  of 
your  commission."  (Directions  here  follow  for 


QO  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

sending  prizes  taken  on  the  coasts  of  France  and 
Spain  into  Bilboa  or  Corogne,  unless  the  danger 
was  too  great,  in  which  case  they  were  to  be  sent 
to  L'Orient  or  Bordeaux.)  "  If  you  make  an  at- 
tempt on  the  coast  of  Great  Britain  we  advise  you 
not  to  return  immediately  into  the  ports  of  France, 
unless  forced  by  stress  of  weather  or  the  pursuit  of 
the  enemy ;  and  in  such  case  you  can  make  the 
proper  representation  to  the  officers  of  the  port,  and 
acquaint  us  with  your  situation.  We  rely  on  your 
ability,  as  well  as  your  zeal,  to  serve  the  United 
States,  and  therefore  do  not  give  you  particular  in- 
structions as  to  your  operations.  We  must  caution 
you  against  giving  any  cause  of  complaint  to  the 
subjects  of  France  or  Spain,  or  of  other  neutral 
powers,  and  recommend  it  to  you  to  show  them 
every  proper  mark  of  respect  and  real  civility  which 
may  be  in  your  power." 

These  orders  had  been  dated  and  issued  to  him 
some  months  before,  but  were  not  modified  or  re- 
voked in  the  interim.  He  was  given  an  opportunity 
to  carry  out  so  much  of  his  proposed  plan  for  at- 
tacking the  English  coast  as  was  possible  with  his 
single  ship. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

THE  SECOND  CRUISE  OF  THE  RANGER — THE  DESCENT 
ON  WHITEHAVEN THE  ATTEMPT  ON  LORD  SEL- 
KIRK  THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  DRAKE. 

THE  first  few  days  of  the  cruise  were  uneventful. 
On  the  I4th  of  April,  1778,  between  the  Scilly  Isles 
and  Cape  Clear,  the  Ranger  captured  a  brig  bound 
for  Ireland  loaded  with  flaxseed.  As  the  prize  and 
her  cargo  were  not  worth  sending  in,  the  vessel  was 
burned  at  sea.  On  the  i7th,  off  St.  George's  Chan- 
nel, they  overhauled  a  large  ship,  the  Lord  Chatham, 
loaded  with  porter  en  route  irom  London  to  Dublin. 
The  ship  and  cargo  being  of  great  value — one  likes 
to  think  how  the  porter  must  have  appealed  to  the 
seamen,  who,  it  is  quite  likely,  were  permitted  to 
regale  themselves  to  a  limited  extent  from  the  cargo 
— she  was  manned  and  sent  back  to  Brest  as  a  prize. 
After  this  capture  Jones  proceeded  up  the  Irish 
Channel,  heading  to  the  northeast,  and  on  the  i8th, 
finding  himself  off  the  northern  extremity  of  the 
Isle  of  Man,  and  in  line  with  Whitehaven,  he  at- 
tempted to  carry  out  a  preconceived  project  of  de- 
stroying the  shipping  in  the  port ;  being  determined, 
as  he  says,  by  one  great  burning  of  ships  to  put  an 
end  to  the  burnings  and  ravagings  and  maraudings 


92  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

of  the  British  upon  the  undefended  coasts  of  North 
America. 

The  wind  was  blowing  from  the  east,  and  he 
beat  up  against  it  toward  the  town,  where  he  hoped 
to  find  a  large  number  of  ships  in  the  harbor.  The 
adverse  wind  delayed  him,  however,  and  it  was  not 
until  ten  o'clock  at  night  that  the  Ranger  reached  a 
point  from  which  it  was  practicable  to  dispatch  the 
boats.  Preparations  were  hastily  made,  and  the 
boats  were  called  away  and  manned  by  volunteers. 
The  boats  were  already  in  the  water  when  the  wind 
suddenly  shifted  and  blew  hard  on  shore,  so  that 
the  Ranger  was  forced  to  beat  out  to  sea  promptly 
to  avoid  taking  ground  on  the  shoals  under  her  lee. 
The  expedition,  therefore,  for  that  time,  was  aban- 
doned, the  boats  were  swung  up  to  the  davits,  and 
the  Ranger  filled  away  again. 

The  next  morning,  off  the  Mull  of  Galloway, 
they  captured  a  schooner  loaded  with  barley  and 
sunk  her.  Learning  from  some  prisoners  that  ten 
or  twelve  large  ships,  under  the  protection  of  a  small 
tender,  were  anchored  in  Lochvyau,  Scotland, 
Jones  ran  for  that  harbor,  intending  to  destroy  them, 
but  the  variable  weather,  as  before,  interfered  with 
his  plans,  and  a  sudden  squall  drove  the  Ranger 
into  the  open  oncesmore  and  saved  the  ships.  He 
captured  and  sunk  a  small  Irish  fishing  sloop,  mak- 
ing prisoners  of  the  fishermen,  that  same  afternoon. 
The  sloop  was  of  no  value  to  Jones,  and  he  would 
have  let  her  go  had  it  not  been  that  he  feared  the 
alarm  would  be  given.  He  treated  the  fishermen 
kindly,  however,  and,  as  we  shall  see,  in  the  end  they 
suffered  no  loss  from  his  action. 


THE   SECOND   CRUISE   OF   THE   RANGER.      93 

On  the  2Oth  he  captured  a  sloop  loaded  with 
grain,  and  on  the  2ist,  off  Carrickfergus,  he  took  an- 
other small  fishing  boat.  Learning  from  the  fisher- 
men that  the  British  man-of-war  Drake,  twenty 
guns  and  a  hundred  and  fifty  men,  was  lying  at 
anchor  in  Belfast  Lough,  he  promptly  determined 
upon  a  bold  scheme  to  effect  her  capture.  Beating 
to  and  fro  off  the  mouth  of  the  Lough  until  the 
evening,  as  soon  as  it  was  dark  he  ran  for  the  har- 
bor, proposing  tq  lay  his  vessel  athwart  the  hawse 
of  the  Drake,  lying  unsuspiciously  at  anchor,  drop 
his  own  anchor  over  the  cable  of  the  English  sloop 
of  war,  and  capture  her  by  boarding. 

Every  preparation  was  made  to  carry  out  this 
brilliant  coup  de  main.  The  crew  were  mustered  at 
quarters,  armed  for  boarding  with  pike  or  cutlass 
and  pistol,  the  best  shots  were  told  off  to  sweep  the 
decks  of  the  Drake  with  small-arm  fire,  guns  were 
loaded  and  primed,  and  so  on.  It  was  blowing 
heavily  as  the  Ranger  under  reduced  canvas  dashed 
gallantly  into  the  harbor.  With  masterly  seaman- 
ship Jones  brought  her  to  in  exactly  the  right  posi- 
tion, and  gave  the  order  to  let  go  the  anchor.  His 
orders  were  not  obeyed,  through  the  negligence  of 
a  drunken  boatswain,  it  was  said,  and  the  anchor  was 
not  dropped  until  the  Ranger  had  drifted  down  past 
the  lee  quarter  of  the  Drake,  when  she  brought  up. 
The  position  of  the  American  was  now  one  of  ex- 
treme peril.  The  Ranger  lay  under  the  broadside  of 
the  Drake,  subjected  to  her  fire  and  unable  to  make 
reply. 

The  watch  kept  on  the  British  ship,  however, 
must  have  been  very  careless.  In  the  darkness  of 


94  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

the  night,  too,  the  guns  of  the  Ranger  being  run  in, 
it  is  probable  that  if  they  observed  her  they  took 
her  for  a  clumsy  merchantman.  Enjoining  perfect 
silence  on  the  part  of  his  crew,  with  the  greatest 
coolness  Jones  took  the  necessary  steps  to  extricate 
the  vessel  from  her  dangerous  position.  The  cable 
was  cut,  sail  made,  and  under  a  heavy  press  of  can- 
vas the  Ranger  beat  out  of  the  harbor,  barely  clear- 
ing the  entrance,  and  only  escaping  wreck  by  the 
consummate  ability  df  her  captain. 

The  plan  was  brilliantly  conceived,  and  would 
have  been  successful  but  for  the  mischance,  or  de- 
lay, in  dropping  the  anchor.  The  crew  originally 
was  only  a  fair  one,  as  has  been  stated,  and,  ow- 
ing to  the  fact  that  their  wages  had  not  been  paid, 
they  were  in  a  more  or  less  mutinous  state  by  this 
time.  Jones  was  covetous  of  glory  only.  A  less 
mercenary  man  never  lived.  To  fight  and  conquer 
was  his  aim,  but  in  this  he  radically  differed  from 
the  ideas  of  his  officers  and  men.  Where  he  wrote 
honor  and  fame  they  saw  plunder  and  prize  money, 
and  it  was  sometimes  difficult  to  get  them  to  obey 
orders  and  properly  to  work  the  ship. 

After  leaving  Belfast  the  Ranger  ratched  over  to 
the  southern  coast  of  Scotland  to  ride  out  the  sud- 
den and  furious  gale  under  the  lee  of  the  land.  The 
wind  had  abated  by  the  morning  of  the  22d,  and 
the  sun  rose  bright  and  clear,  discovering  from  the 
tops  of  the  Ranger  a  beautiful  prospect  of  the  three 
kingdoms  covered  with  snow  as  far  as  the  eye  could 
see.  The  wind  now  set  fair  for  Whitehaven,  and 
Jones  squared  away  for  that  port  to  carry  out  his 
previous  project.  The  breeze  fell  during  the  day, 


THE   DESCENT   ON   WHITEHAVEN. 


95 


however,  and  it  was  not  until  midnight  that  the 
boats  were  called  away. 

The  expedition  comprised  two  boats,  carrying 
thirty-one  officers  and  men,  all  volunteers,  Jones 
himself  being  in  command  of  one  boat,  while  Lieu- 
tenant Wallingford,  one  of  the  best  officers  of  the 
ship,  had  the  other.  Simpson  and  the  second  lieu- 
tenant both  pleaded  indisposition  and  fatigue  as  ex- 
cuse for  not  going  on  the  expedition.  The  tide  was 
ebbing,  and  it  was  not  until  nearly  dawn,  after  a 
long,  hard  pull,  that  the  two  boats  reached  the  har- 
bor, which  was  divided  into  two  parts  at  that  time  by 
a  long  stone  pier.  There  were  from  seventy  to  one 
hundred  ships  on  the  north  side  of  the  pier,  and 
about  twice  as  many  on  the  south  side,  ranging  in 
size  from  two  hundred  to  four  hundred  tons.  As  the 
tide  was  out,  the  ships  were  all  aground,  lying  high 
and  dry  upon  the  beach,  and  in  close  touch  with 
each  other.  Directing  Wallingford  to  set  fire  to 
the  ships  on  the  north  side  of  the  pier,  Jones  and  his 
party  landed  and  advanced  toward  the  fort  which 
protected  the  harbor. 

The  weather  was  raw  and  cold,  the  fort  was  old 
and  dilapidated,  and  manned  by  a  few  men.  The 
sentry,  ignorant  of  the  presence  of  any  foe,  never 
dreaming  of  an  enemy  within  a  thousand  miles  of 
him,  had  calmly  retired  to  the  sentry  box.  Probably 
he  was  asleep.  The  little  party  approached  the  walls 
without  being  detected.  Climbing  upon  the  shoul- 
der of  one  of  his  men,  Jones  sprang  over  the  ram- 
part, where  he  was  followed  by  the  rest  of  the  party. 
The  feeble  garrison  was  captured  without  striking  a 
blow.  The  guns  were  hastily  spiked.  Ordering  the 


96  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

prisoners  to  be  marched  down  to  the  wharf,  and 
throwing  out  a  few  sentries,  Jones,  attended  by  a 
single  midshipman,  then  made  his  way  to  the  other 
fort  or  battery,  a  distance  of  about  half  a  mile.  Find- 
ing it  untenanted,  he  spiked  the  few  guns  mounted 
there  and  returned  to  the  landing  place. 

To  his  very  great  surprise  and  disappointment,  no 
evidence  of  a  conflagration  was  apparent.  When  he 
reached  the  wharf  he  was  met  by  Wallingford,  who 
explained  his  failure  to  fire  the  shipping  by  claim- 
ing that  his  lights  had  gone  out.  It  was  before  the 
days  of  lucifer  matches,  and  the  party  had  carried 
candles  in  lanterns  with  which  to  kindle  the  fires. 
Wallingford  excused  himself  by  a  remark  which 
does  more  credit  to  his  heart  than  to  his  head,  to 
the  effect  that  he  could  not  see  that  anything  was  to 
be  gained  by  burning  poor  people's  property.  In- 
asmuch as  he  was  sent  on  the  expedition  to  obey 
orders  and  not  to  philosophize,  his  statement  gives 
the  key  to  the  disposition  among  the  officers  and 
crew.  \Vhether  his  hesitation  was  dictated  by  char- 
ity to  others  or  lack  of  possible  profit  to  the  officers 
and  men  it  is  not  necessary  to  inquire  particularly 
now,  for  Wallingford  redeemed  himself  nobly  later 
in  the  cruise.  A  hasty  inspection  revealed  the  fact 
that  the  candles  had  also  burned  out,  or  had  been 
extinguished  through  carelessness,  in  Jones'  own 
boat. 

It  was  now  broad  daylight,  and  considerations 
of  safety  indicated  an  immediate  return  to  the  ship ; 
but  Jones  was  not  willing  to  abandon  his  brilliantly 
conceived,  carefully  prepared,  and  coolly  undertaken 
enterprise  without  some  measure  of  success.  Re- 


THE    DESCENT   ON   WHITEHAVEN. 


97 


posting  his  sentries,  therefore,  he  dispatched  mes- 
sengers who  broke  into  a  neighboring  dwelling 
house  and  procured  a  light  in  the  shape  of  a  torch 
or  glowing  ember.  With  his  own  hand  Jones  kindled 
a  fire  on  one  of  the  largest  ships  in  the  midst  of  the 
huddle  of  vessels  on  the  beach.  In  order  to  insure 
a  thorough  conflagration,  a  hasty  search  through 
the  other  vessels  was  made,  and  a  barrel  of  tar  was 
found  which  was  poured  upon  the  flames  now  burn- 
ing fiercely. 

One  of  the  boat  party,  named  David  Freeman, 
happened  to  be  an  Englishman.  In  the  confusipn 
attendant  upon  these  various  maneuvers  he  made 
off,  and,  escaping  observation,  sought  shelter  in  the 
town,  which  he  quickly  alarmed.  The  inhabitants 
came  swarming  out  of  their  houses  in  the  gray  of 
the  morning  and  hastened  toward  the  wharf.  See- 
ing that  the  fire  on  the  ship  was  at  last  blazing  furi- 
ously, and  realizing  that  nothing  more  could  be 
effected,  Jones  ordered  his  men  to  their  boats. 
Then,  in  order  that  the  fire  already  kindled  might 
have  sufficient  time  to  develop,  the  undaunted  cap- 
tain stood  alone  on  the  wharf,  pistol  in  hand,  con- 
fronting the  ever-increasing  crowd.  Impelled  by 
pressure  from  behind,  those  in  front  finally  made 
a  movement  toward  him.  He  gave  no  ground  what- 
ever. Pointing  his  weapons  at  the  front  rank,  he 
sternly  bade  them  retire,  which  they  did  with  pre- 
cipitation. I  should  think  so.  Having  remained  a 
sufficient  time,  as  he  thought,  he  calmly  entered  the 
boat  and  was  rowed  to  the  Ranger. 

Some  of  the  inhabitants  promptly  made  a  dash 
for  the  burning  ship,  and  succeeded  by  hard  work 


^8  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

in  confining  the  fire  to  that  one  vessel.  Others  re- 
leased the  prisoners  which  Jones  left  bound  on  the 
wharf,  taking,  as  he  said,  only  two  or  three  for  a 
sample.  The  soldiers  ran  to  the  fort  and  man- 
aged to  draw  the  hastily  applied  spikes  from  two  or 
three  of  the  guns,  which  they  loaded  and  fired  after 
the  retreating  boats.  Answering  the  harmless  fusil- 
lade with  a  few  derisive  musket  shots,  Jones  re- 
turned to  the  Ranger ;  having  had,  he  says,  the 
pleasure  of  neither  inflicting  nor  receiving  any  loss 
in  killed  or  wounded. 

The  desertion  and  treachery  of  David  Freeman 
undoubtedly  saved  the  shipping.  The  enterprise 
was  well  conceived  and  carried  out  with  the  utmost 
coolness.  Had  the  orders  of  Captain  Jones  been 
obeyed,  the  shipping  would  have  been  completely 
destroyed.  As  it  was,  the  descent  created  the  great- 
est consternation  in  England.  No  enemy  had  landed 
on  those  shores  for  generations,  and  the  expedition 
by  Jones  was  like  slapping  the  face  of  the  king  on 
his  throne.  A  burning  wave  of  indignation  swept 
over  England,  as  the  news  was  carried  from  town 
to  town,  from  hall  to  hall,  and  from  hamlet  to  ham- 
let. It  was  all  very  well  to  burn  property  in  Amer- 
ica, but  the  matter  had  a  different  aspect  entirely 
when  the  burning  took  place  in  England.  A  uni- 
versal demand  arose  for  the  capture  of  this  audacious 
seaman,  who  was  called  many  hard  names  by  the 
infuriated  British. 

From  Whitehaven  the  Ranger  ran  over  to  St. 
Mary's  Isle,  a  beautifully  wooded  promontory  at  the 
mouth  of  the  River  Dee,  which  was  the  seat  of  the 
Earl  of  Selkirk.  In  furtherance  of  his  usual  desire 


THE   ATTEMPT   ON    LORD   SELKIRK. 


99 


to  ameliorate  the  wretched  condition  of  the  Ameri- 
cans in  British  prisons,  Jones  determined  to  seize 
the  earl.  He  cherished  the  hope  that  by  securing  the 
person  of  a  peer  of  the  realm,  who  could  be  either 
held  as  a  hostage  or  exchanged  for  some  prominent 
American  captive,  he  could  thus  effect  a  recognition 
of  the  principle  of  exchange,  which  the  British  had 
refused  to  consider.  It  was  a  wild  hope,  to  be  sure, 
but  not  without  a  certain  plausibility. 

Two  boat  crews  under  the  command  of  Lieu- 
tenants Simpson  and  Hall,  with  himself  in  charge  of 
the  expedition,  landed  on  the  shore.  Before  moving 
toward  the  hall,  Jones  learned  that  the  earl  was  not 
at  home.  He  proposed,  therefore,  to  return  to  the 
ship,  but  the  mutinous  men  demurred  fiercely  to 
this  suggestion,  and  demanded  that  they  be  per- 
mitted to  enjoy  the  opportunity  for  plunder  pre- 
sented. The  situation  was  a  precarious  one,  and 
Jones  finally  agreed,  although  very  reluctantly,  that 
they  should  demand  the  family  silver  from  the 
Countess  of  Selkirk,  who  was  at  home.  He  did  this 
with  the  full  intention  of  purchasing  the  silver  on 
his  own  account  when  the  prizes  were  disposed  of, 
and  returning  it  to  the  earl.  A  party  of  the  men, 
therefore,  with  Simpson  and  Hall,  went  up  to  the 
house,  leaving  Jones  pacing  to  and  fro  near  the 
shore  under  the  oaks  and  chestnuts  of  the  estate. 
By  Jones'  orders  the  seamen  did  not  enter  the 
house.  Simpson  and  Hall  were  ushered  into  the 
presence  of  the  Lady  Selkirk,  made  their  demand 
upon  her  ladyship,  received  the  silver,  which  the 
butler  gathered  up  for  them,  and  retired  without 
molesting  or  harming  any  of  the  inmates  or  en- 


100  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

deavoring  to  appropriate  anything  except  what  was 
given  them.  The  men  drank  her  ladyship's  health 
in  good  Scots  whisky,  which  was  served  them  by 
the  countess'  orders.  The  party  then  embarked  on 
the  Ranger. 

One  of  his  biographers  has  said  that  the  whole 
transaction  was  an  evidence  of  the  singular  ability 
of  Jones  in  creating  difficulties  which  it  afterward  re- 
quired greater  labor  to  overcome ;  but  the  criticism 
is  unfair.  The  only  way  in  which  he  could  satisfy 
the  demands  of  his  men  and  maintain  even  that  pre- 
carious authority  which  the  peculiar  constitution  of 
the  crew  and  the  character  of  his  officers  enabled 
him  to  have,  was  by  permitting  them  to  take  some- 
thing of  value  which  could  be  turned  into  prize 
money.  He  could  buy  it  from  the  prize  court,  or 
from  the  prize  master,  as  well  as  any  other  man,  and 
after  it  became  his  own  property  he  could  return  it 
to  its  proper  owners  at  his  pleasure. 

It  was  a  perfectly  legitimate  transaction  on  his 
part,  and  he  could  only  obviate  the  necessity  by  tak- 
ing the  proposed  value  of  the  silver  out  of  his  own 
pocket  and  handing  it  to  his  men,  a  proceeding 
which  would  have  been  subversive  of  the  last  re- 
mains of  discipline,  and  therefore  could  not  be  con- 
sidered for  a  moment.  It  would  establish  a  prece- 
dent which  could  not  be  carried  out  in  the  future 
unless  he  were  willing  to  abrogate  his  ri-ght  of  com- 
mand ;  if  he  began  that  way  he  would  have  to  buy 
their  acquiescence  to  every  command — bribe  them 
to  obey  orders ;  so  he  said  nothing  whatever  to 
them  about  his  intentions  with  regard  to  the  plate 
at  present. 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  DRAKE.      IQI 

Standing  away  from  St.  Mary's  Isle  on  the 
morning  of  the  24th,  the  Ranger  came  in  sight  once 
more  of  Carrickfergus.  By  this  time  her  presence 
on  the  Irish  coast  had  become  well  known,  and  ex- 
presses had  been  sent  to  the  Drake  with  information 
of  the  propinquity  of  the  enemy.  In  the  afternoon 
the  Ranger  appeared  in  the  offing  easily  visible  from 
the  Drake.  The  commander  of  the  Drake,  Captain 
George  Burdon,  with  singular  stupidity,  sent  a  lieu- 
tenant and  a  boat  off  toward  the  Ranger  to  investi- 
gate and  report  what  she  was,  meanwhile  getting 
his  ship  under  way  and  clearing  for  action.  The 
boat  foolishly  came  alongside  the  Ranger  and  was 
captured.  As  Burdon  weighed  anchor  he  was  joined 
by  Lieutenant  William  Dobbs,  engaged  on  recruit- 
ing duty  in  the  vicinity,  and  a  band  of  volunteers 
ranging  in  number,  according  to  different  reports, 
from  ten  to  forty. 

The  regular  complement  of  the  Drake  was  one 
hundred  and  fifty  officers  and  men.  This  re-enforce- 
ment raised  her  crew  to  between  one  hundred  and 
sixty  and  one  hundred  and  ninety.  It  was  devel- 
oped at  the  court-martial,  which  was  held  upon  the 
survivors  some  months  after  for  the  loss  of  the  ship, 
that  the  Drake  was  poorly  prepared  for  action ;  that 
she  was  short  of  commissioned  and  warrant  officers 
rnd  skilled  men  ;  that  her  powder  charges  were  bad, 
matches  poor,  cartridges  unfilled,  and  that  her  guns 
were  badly  mounted,  so  that  they  were  easily  "over- 
set," and  so  on.  In  short,  the  whole  catalogue  of 
usual  excuses  for  failure  is  given.  It  is  true  that 
although  the  Drake  carried  two  more  guns  than  the 
Ranger,  they  were  of  smaller  caliber,  being  4- 


102  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

pounders.  Still,  the  two  ships  were  well  matched, 
and  preparedness  for  action  has  always  been  con- 
sidered a  test  of  naval  ability  as  much  as  capacity 
in  maneuvering  and  courage  in  the  actual  fight. 

The  wind  was  now  blowing  toward  the  shore, 
and  the  Drake  made  but  slow  progress  in  ratching 
toward  the  sea.  While  the  Ranger  awaited  her,  the 
guns  were  run  in  and  the  English  flag  hoisted  on 
the  approach  of  the  Drake's  boat,  and  the  character 
of  the  American  disguised  as  much  as  possible.  I 
presume  that,  save  for  her  armament,  she  looked 
more  like  a  merchant  vessel  than  anything  else,  and, 
as  Jones  skillfully  kept  the  sloop  end  on  to  the  cut- 
ter, the  British  suspected,  or  at  least  discovered, 
nothing.  Indeed,  so  wrell  was  the  deception  carried 
out  that  the  Drake's  officer  actually  boarded  the 
Ranger  and  was  made  prisoner  with  his  crew  before 
he  discovered  her  quality. 

Meanwhile  things  were  almost  in  a  state  of  mu- 
tiny. Jones  states  in  his  journal  that  he  was  in  peril 
of  his  life  from  his  recalcitrant  crew,  who,  under 
the  leadership  of  Simpson,  were  apparently  ap- 
palled at  the  prospect  of  encountering  a  regular 
man-of-war,  and  therefore  manifested  a  great  un- 
willingness to  fight.  Plunder  without  danger  was 
the  end  of  their  ambition.  However,  after  the  cap- 
ture of  the  Drake's  boat,  by  putting  a  bold  front  on 
the  situation,  Jones  succeeded  in  restoring  compara- 
tive order  and  getting  his  men  to  their  quarters. 
His  power  of  persuasive  and  inspiring  speech  never 
stood  him  in  better  stead  than  on  this  occasion,  and 
he  actually  seems  to  have  succeeded  in  infusing 
some  of  his  own  spirit  into  the  refractory  men. 


THE   CAPTURE   OV    THE   DRAKE.  103 

It  was  late  in  the  evening  before  the  Drake 
neared  the  Ranger.  Jones  had  stood  out  to  sea 
to  draw  his  pursuer  far  away  from  the  land  to  pre- 
vent his  escape  in  case  of  defeat,  and  now  awaited 
his  advance.  The  Drake  was  accompanied  by  sev- 
eral pleasure  yachts  filled  with  people  who  were 
desirous  of  seeing  the  English  victory,  which  was 
almost  universally  attendant  upon  single  ship  ac- 
tions in  which  the  British  navy  participated  ;  but,  not 
liking  the  look  of  things  in  this  instance,  they  one 
by  one  dropped  astern  and  returned  to  the  land. 

Between  five  and  six  o'clock,  having  come 
within  easy  distance,  an  officer  of  the  Drake  sprang 
on  the  rail  and  hailed,  demanding  to  know  the 
name  of  the  stranger.  Jones,  still  keeping  the  stern 
of  his  ship  toward  the  bow  of  the  enemy,  seized  the 
trumpet  and  replied : 

"  This  is  the  American  Continental  ship  Ranger. 
We  are  waiting  for  you.  The  sun  is  scarce  an  hour 
high.  It  is  time  to  begin.  Come  on !  " 

While  he  was  amusing  the  English  captain  with 
this  rather  lengthy  rejoinder  for  the  purpose  of 
gaining  time,  the  Stars  and  Stripes  supplanted  the 
red  ensign  of  England,  the  helm  of  the  Ranger, 
which  was  to  windward  of  her  antagonist,  was  sud- 
denly put  up,  and  by  smart  handling,  in  the  twink- 
ling of  an  eye  she  was  rushed  Across  the  bow  of 
the  Drake,  which  was  severely  raked  by  a  prompt 
broadside  at  short  range.  As  Jones  shifted  his  helm 
so  as  not  to  lose  the  weather  gauge,  the  advantage 
of  the  first  hard  blow  was  clearly  with  the  Ameri- 
cans. The  English  captain,  after  an  attempt  to  cross 
her  stern,  which  was  frustrated  by  Jones'  prompt- 


I04  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

ness,  ran  off  by  the  side  of  the  Ranger,  and  the  com- 
bat resolved  itself  into  a  fair  and  square  yardarm  to 
yardarm  fight,  which  was  continued  with  the  most 
determined  persistence  on  both  sides.  The  two  ships 
under  the  gentle  breeze  sailed  side  by  side,  gradu- 
ally nearing,  and  poured  a  furious  fire  upon  each 
other.  The  lack  of  preparedness  on  the  English 
ship  was  manifested  in  the  slowness  and  inaccuracy 
of  her  gun  practice.  That  of  the  Ranger,  however, 
was  very  effective.  An  hour  and  five  minutes,  after 
the  first  broadside  the  enemy  called  for  quarter 
and  hauled  down  the  flag.  The  Drake  was  a 
wreck.  Her  fore  and  main  topsail  yards  were 
cut  adrift  and  lying  on  the  caps ;  the  fore  top- 
gallant yard  and  the  spanker  gaff  were  hanging  up 
and  down  their  respective  masts ;  two  ensigns  had 
been  shot  away,  and  another  one  was  hanging  over 
the  quarter  galley  and  dragging  in  the  water.  The 
jib  was  dragging  under  her  forefoot ;  her  sails  and 
rigging  were  entirely  cut  to  pieces,  most  of  the  yards 
wounded,  and  her  hull  very  much  shattered.  Many 
of  her  guns  were  dismounted,  and  she  had  lost,  ac- 
cording to  the  statement  of  the  Americans,  forty- 
two  *  men  in  killed  and  wounded  (or  about  twenty 
per  cent  of  her  force !),  including  her  captain,  who 
had  been  struck  in  the  head  by  a  musket  ball  at  the 
close  of  the  action,  about  a  minute  before  the  ship 
surrendered ;  the  gallant  first  lieutenant,  Dobbs, 
who  had  bravely  volunteered  for  service,  was  so 
severely  wounded  that  he  survived  the  action  only 
two  days.  Captain  Burdon  was  still  living  when 

*  English  accounts  state  their  casualties  at  twenty-five. 


THE  CAPTURE  OF  THE  DRAKE. 


105 


Jones  boarded  the  prize,  but  died  a  few  moments 
after.  The  Americans  lost  two  killed,  among  them 
being  poor  Wallingford,  whose  death  has  somewhat 
redeemed  him  from  his  failure  to  obey  orders  in 
the  raid  on  Whitehaven.  There  were  six  wounded 
on  the  Ranger,  including  the  gunner  and  a  midship- 
man who  lost  his  arm ;  one  of  the  wounded  subse- 
quently died. 

The  action  was  a  sharp  and  brilliant  one.  Jones 
had  maneuvered  and  fought  his  ship  with  his  usual 
skill  and  courage,  and  had  given  fair  evidence  of 
what  might  be  expected  from  him  with  a  better  ves- 
sel and  better  men  under  his  command.  The  Eng- 
lish captain  had  been  outmaneuvered  when  he  per- 
mitted the  American  to  rake  him,  and  he  had  been 
outfought  in  the  action.  Unpreparedness  was  the 
cause  of  the  failure  of  the  Drake  to  make  a  better 
showing  in  the  fight.  This  lack  must  be  laid  at 
the  captain's  door.  It  is  the  business  of  a  cap- 
tain to  see  that  things  are  ready.  The  deficiencies 
in  the  Drake's  equipment  were  counterbalanced  by 
equal  deficiencies  on  the  part  of  the  Ranger.  The 
apparent  preponderance  of  the  latter's  gun  power 
was,  in  fact,  minimized  by  the  shortening  of  her 
guns,  of  which  Jones  had  previously  complained. 
It  is  probable  that  the  Drafce  had  a  better  cftw, 
and  such  officers  as  she  had  were  probably  better 
than  those  under  Jones,  with  a  few  exceptions.  It 
is  always  the  custom  of  the  defeated  party  to  make 
excuses,  and  always  will  be ;  but  the  ships  were 
as  nearly  matched  in  offensive  qualities  as  two  ves- 
sels in  different  navies  are  ever  likely  to  be,  and 
the  difference  between  them,  which  determined  the 


I06  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

issue  of  the  conflict,  was  purely  a  question  of  the 
personal  equation.  It  was  always  hard  to  find  any- 
thing to  counterbalance  Jones  for  the  other  side  of 
the  equality  sign.  Burdon  was  not  the  man. 

The  English  captain  was  a  brave  but  very  stupid 
or  very  confident  man.  Jones  was  more  than  a 
match  for  him  at  best,  and  when  the  mistakes  of 
Burdon  are  considered  the  comparison  is  painful. 
The  English  knew  that  the  Ranger  was  on  the 
coast ;  the  Drake  had  picked  up  her  anchor  (it  was, 
of  course,  recaptured),  and  an  alert  mind  would  have 
connected  the  recovered  anchor  with  the  attempt 
of  the  night  of  the  2Oth.  The  suspicious  actions  of 
the  stranger — and  there  must  have  been  some  indi- 
cation in  her  maneuvers  and  appearance  at  least 
to  inspire  caution — .the  failure  of  the  boat  crew  either 
to  return  or  to  make  any  signal,  should  have  made 
the  English  captain  pause  and  consider  the  situa- 
tion. But  with  the  usual  "  uncircumspect  gallantry  " 
of  his  kind  he  charged  clown,  bull-like,  on  his  enemy, 
was  promptly  raked,  hammered  to  pieces,  killed,  and 
his  ship  surrendered.  He  proved  his  courage  in 
battle — which  no  one  would  question,  bravery  being 
usual  and  to  be  expected — and  he  died  in  the  at- 
tempt to  atone  for  his  rashness ;  but  professionally 
he  was  a  failure,  and  his  demise  was  fortunate  for 
his  reputation  and  future  career.  His  death  prob- 
ably prevented  some  very  inconvenient  questions 
being  asked  him. 

Jones  treated  his  prisoners  with  a  kindness  and 
consideration  the  more  remarkable  from  the  fact 
that  the  contrary  was  the  custom  with  the  British 
toward  American  captives.  During  the  night  and 


GENEROSITY   TO   THE   FISHERMEN. 


ID/ 


the  whole  of  the  next  day,  the  weather  being  mod- 
erate, the  two  ships  were  hove  to  while  the  Drake 
was  refitted  as  well  as  their  resources  permitted. 
Late  the  next  afternoon  a  large  brigantine,  actuated 
by  an  unfortunate  curiosity,  ran  down  so  near  the 
two  ships  that  she  was  brought  to  by  a  shot  from 
the  Drake  and  taken  possession  of.  Having  re- 
paired damages  and  put  the  Drake  in  as  good  trim 
as  possible,  Jones  first  determined  to  return  to  Brest 
by  the  South  Channel,  the  way  he  had  come,  but 
the  variable  wind  shifted  and  came  strongly,  and 
he  decided  to  run  northward  before  it  and  pass 
around  the  west  coast  of  Ireland.  In  spite  of  his 
previous  insubordination  Simpson  was  placed  in 
command  of  the  Drake. 

Before  they  left  these  waters,  however,  some- 
thing still  remained  to  be  done.  On  the  evening  of 
the  25th  the  two  ships  sailed  once  more  for  Belfast 
Lough.  There  Jones  hove  the  Ranger  to,  and, 
having  given  the  poor  Irish  fishermen,  whom  he 
had  captured  on  the  2ist  and  held,  one  of  the 
Drake's  boats,  and  having  charitably  bestowed  upon 
them  all  the  guineas  which  he  had  left  in  his  private 
purse  (not  many,  I  suppose)  to  remunerate  them 
for  the  loss  they  had  sustained,  he  sent  them  ashore. 
They  took  with  them  one  of  the  Drake's  sails,  which 
would  attest  the  truth  of  their  story  of  what  had 
happened.  The  grateful  Irishmen  wrere  delighted 
and  touched  by  such  unusual  treatment,  and  they 
signalized  their  gratitude  to  their  generous  and  kind- 
hearted  captor  by  giving  Jones  three  cheers  from 
the  boat  as  they  passed  the  Ranger's  quarter.  The 
Americans  then  bore  awav  to  the  northwestward. 


108  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

The  voyage  around  the  coast  of  Ireland  was  un- 
eventful. Lieutenant  Dobbs,  of  the  Drake,  died  on 
the  cruise,  and  he  and  Captain  Burdon  were  buried 
at  sea  with  all  possible  honors,  Jones  himself  read- 
ing the  usual  Church  service.  The  cruise  was  con- 
tinued without  incident  until  the  morning  of  the 
5th  of  May,  when  the  Ranger  being  off  Ushant, 
and  having  the  Drake  in  tow,  Jones  cut  the  tow- 
line  and  bore  away  in  chase  of  a  sail  which  had  been 
sighted.  Simpson,  instead  of  continuing  toward 
Brest,  as  he  had  been  directed,  hauled  off  to  the 
south,  so  that  when  Jones  had  overtaken  the  chase 
and  found  her  a  neutral,  the  Drake  was  almost  en- 
tirely out  of  sight  to  the  southward. 

The  Ranger  chased  her  and  made  various  sig- 
nals, to  which  no  attention  was  paid.  Simpson 
changed  his  course  aimlessly  several  times.  During 
the  whole  of  the  day  the  same  eccentric  maneuvers 
on  the  part  of  the  Drake  continued.  To  Jones' 
great  annoyance,  the  inexplicable  actions  of  the 
prize  prevented  him  from  chasing  several  large  ves- 
sels which  he  saw  standing  into  the  Channel,  among 
which  he  would  probably  have  made  many  valuable 
captures.  He  was  forced  to  abandon  any  attempt 
to  take  them  and  follow  the  Drake,  which  he  only 
overhauled  late  in  Jhe  evening.  By  Jones'  orders 
Lieutenant  Elijah  Hall  immediately  replaced  Simp- 
son in  command  of  the  Drake,  and  the  latter  was 
placed  under  arrest.  On  the  8th  of  May  both  ves- 
sels arrived  safely  at  Brest,  from  which  point  Jones 
promptly  dispatched  the  following  remarkable  let- 
ter to  the  Countess  of  Selkirk  : 


A    REMARKABLE    LETTER. 


109 


"  RANGER,  BREST,  May  <?,  1778. 
"  The  Right  Hon.  the  Countess  of  Selkirk. 

"  MADAM  :  It  can  not  be  too  much  lamented  that, 
in  the  profession  of  arms,  the  officer  of  fine  feelings 
and  real  sensibility  should  be  under  the  necessity 
of  winking  at  any  action  of  persons  under  his  com- 
mand which  his  heart  can  not  approve ;  but  the  re- 
flection is  doubly  severe  when  he  finds  himself 
obliged,  in  appearance,  to  countenance  such  actions 
by  his  authority.  This  hard  case  was  mine,  when,  on 
the  23d  of  April  last,  I  landed  on  St.  Mary's  Isle. 
Knowing  Lord  Selkirk's  interest  with  his  king,  and 
esteeming  as  I  do  his  private  character,  I  wished 
to  make  him  the  happy  instrument  of  alleviating  the 
horrors  of  hopeless  captivity,  when  the  brave  are 
overpowered  and  made  prisoners  of  war.  It  was 
perhaps  fortunate  for  you, -madam,  that  he  was  from 
home,  for  it  was  my  intention  to  have  taken  him  on 
board  the  Ranger  and  detained  him  until,  through 
his  means,  a  general  and  fair  exchange  of  prisoners, 
as  well  in  Europe  as  in  America,  had  been  effected. 

"  When  I  was  informed,  by  some  men  whom  I 
rnet  at  landing  that  his  lordship  was  absent,  I 
walked  back  to  my  boat,  determined  to  leave  the 
island.  By  the  way,  however,  some  officers  who 
were  with  me  could  not  forbear  expressing  their 
discontent,  observing  that  in  America  no  delicacy 
was  shown  by  the  English,  who  took  away  all  sorts 
of  movable  property,  setting  fire  not  only  to  towns 
and  to  the  houses  of  the  rich,  without  distinction, 
but  not  even  sparing  the  wretched  hamlets  and 
milch  cows  of  the  poor  and  helpless,  at  the  approach 
of  an  inclement  winter.  That  party  had  been  with 


HO  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

me  the  same  morning  at  Whitehaven;  some  com- 
plaisance, therefore,  was  their  due.  I  had  but  a 
moment  to  think  how  I  might  gratify  them,  and 
at  the  same  time  do  your  ladyship  the  least  injury. 
I  charged  the  officers  to  permit  none  of  the  seamen 
to  enter  the  house,  or  to  hurt  anything  about  it ;  to 
treat  you,  madam,  with  the  utmost  respect;  to  ac- 
cept of  the  plate  which  was  offered,  and  to  come 
away  without  making  a  search  or  demanding  any- 
thing else.  I  am  induced  to  believe  that  I  was 
punctually  obeyed,  since  I  am  informed  that  the 
plate  which  they  brought  away  is  far  short  of  the 
quantity  expressed  in  the  inventory  which  accom- 
panied it.  I  have  gratified  my  men,  and  when  the 
plate  is  sold  I  shall  become  the  purchaser,  and  will 
gratify  my  own  feelings  by  restoring  it  to  you  by 
such  conveyance  as  you  shall  please  to  direct. 

"  Had  the  earl  been  on  board  the  Ranger  the  fol- 
lowing evening  he  would  have  seen  the  awful  pomp 
and  dreadful  carnage  of  a  sea  engagement,  both 
affording  ample  subject  for  the  pencil,  as  well  as 
melancholy  reflection  for  the  contemplative  mind. 
Humanity  starts  back  from  such  scenes  of  horror, 
and  can  not  sufficiently  execrate  the  vile  promoters 
of  this  detestable  war. 

"  '  For  they,  't  was  they  unsheathed  the  ruthless  blade, 
And  Heaven  shall  ask  the  havoc  it  has  made.' 

"  The  British  ship  of  war  Drake,  mounting 
twenty  guns,  with  more  than  her  full  complement 
of  officers  and  men,  was  our  opponent.  The  ships 
met,  and  the  advantage  was  disputed  with  great 
fortitude  on  each  side  for  an  hour  and  four  minutes, 


A   REMARKABLE    LETTER.  m 

when  the  gallant  commander  of  the  Drake  fell,  and 
victory  declared  in  favor  of  the  Ranger.  The  ami- 
able lieutenant  lay  mortally  wounded,  besides  near 
forty  of  the  inferior  officers  and  crew  killed  and 
wounded — a  melancholy  demonstration  of  the  un- 
certainty of  human  prospects  and  of  the  sad  re- 
verses of  fortune  which  an  hour  can  produce.  I 
buried  them  in  a  spacious  grave,  with  the  honors 
due  to  the  memory  of  the  brave. 

"  Though  I  have  drawn  my  sword  in  the  present 
generous  struggle  for  the  rights  of  men,  yet  I  am 
not  in  arms  as  an  American,  nor  am  I  in  pursuit  of 
riches.  My  fortune  is  liberal  enough,  having  no 
wife  and  family,  and  having  lived  long  enough  to 
know  that  riches  can  not  secure  happiness.  I  pro- 
fess myself  a  citizen  of  the  world,  totally  unfettered 
by  the  little  mean  distinctions  of  climates  or  of  coun- 
try, which  diminish  the  benevolence  of  the  heart 
and  set  bounds  to  philanthropy.  Before  this  war 
was  begun,  I  had,  at  an  early  time  in  life,  with- 
drawn from  sea  service  in  favor  of  '  calm  contem- 
plation and  poetic  ease.'  I  have  sacrificed  not  only 
my  favorite  scheme  of  life,  but  the  softer  affections 
of  the  heart,  and  my  prospects  of  domestic  happi- 
ness, and  I  am  ready  to  sacrifice  my  life  also  with 
cheerfulness,  if  that  forfeiture  could  restore  peace 
among  mankind. 

"  As  the  feelings  of  your  gentle  bosom  can  not 
but  be  congenial  with  mine,  let  me  entreat  you, 
madam,  to  use  your  persuasive  art  with  your  hus- 
band, to  endeavour  to  stop  this  cruel  and  destruc- 
tive war,  in  which  Britain  can  never  succeed. 
Heaven  can  never  countenance  the  barbarous  and 


112  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

unmanly  practice  of  the  Britons  in  America,  which 
savages  would  blush  at,  and  which,  if  not  discon- 
tinued, will  soon  be  retaliated  on  Britain  by  a  justly 
enraged  people.  Should  you  fail  in  this,  and  I  am 
persuaded  you  will  attempt  it  (and  who  can  resist 
the  power  of  such  an  advocate?),  your  endeavour 
to  effect  a  general  exchange  of  prisoners  will  be 
an  act  of  humanity,  which  will  afford  you  golden 
feelings  on  your  deathbed. 

"  I  hope  this  cruel  contest  will  soon  be  closed ; 
but,  should  it  continue,  I  wage  no  war  with  the  fair. 
I  acknowledge  their  force,  and  bend  before  it  with 
submission.  Let  not,  therefore,  the  amiable 
Countess  of  Selkirk  regard  me  as  an  enemy;  I  am 
ambitious  of  her  esteem  and  friendship,  and  would 
do  anything,  consistent  with  my  duty,  to  merit  it. 
The  honor  of  a  line  from  your  hand,  in  answer  to 
this,  will  lay  me  under  a  singular  obligation,  and 
if  I  can  render  you  any  acceptable  service  in  France 
or  elsewhere  I  hope  you  see  into  my  character  so 
far  as  to  command  me,  without  the  least  grain  of 
reserve.  I  wish  to  know  the  exact  behaviour  of 
my  people,  as  I  am  determined  to  punish  them  if 
they  have  exceeded  their  liberty. 

"  I  have  the  honor  to  be,  with  much  esteem  and 
with  profound  respect,  madam,  etc., 

"  JOHN  PAUL  JONES." 

The  shrewd  Franklin  says  of  this  extraordinary 
document :  "  It  is  a  gallant  letter,  which  must  give 
her  ladyship  a  high  and  just  opinion  of  your  gen- 
erosity and  nobleness  of  mind."  But  I  seem  to  read 
a  gentle  laugh  in  the  tactful  words  of  the  old  phi- 


THE   PLATE    IS    RESTORED.  113 

losopher.  I  like  this  epistle  less  than  any  of  Jones' 
letters  I  have  read,  but  it  certainly  does  not  merit 
the  severe  censures  which  have  been  passed  upon 
it.  No  one  would  write  such  a  letter  to-day,  cer- 
tainly, but  things  were  different  then,  and  we  need 
not  too  closely  criticise  the  form  and  style  of  the 
document  in  view  of  its  honest  purpose  and  good 
intent. 

As  might  have  been  expected,  the  Countess  of 
Selkirk  made  no  reply  to  this  singular  communica- 
tion. To  anticipate  the  course  of  events,  and  obviate 
the  necessity  of  further  discussion  of  this  incident,  it 
may  be  stated  that  more  than  a  year  after  its  cap- 
ture Jones  obtained  possession  of  the  plate  through 
the  prize  court  by  strenuous  effort,  and  by  paying 
for  it  at  an  exorbitant  valuation.  The  state  of  war- 
fare then  existing  between  France  and  England  pre- 
vented the  delivery  of  the  silver  for  several  years, 
though  Jones  made  earnest  efforts  to  get  it  into 
the  hands  of  the  Selkirks  whenever  apparent  op- 
portunity presented.  It  was  not,  however,  until 
1784,  after  peace  had  been  declared,  that  the  plate 
was  restored  to  its  original  owners.  It  is  stated  that 
it  was  received  by  them  in  exactly  the  same  con- 
dition as  when  it  had  been  taken,  even  to  the  tea 
leaves  which  were  still  in  the  teapot!  The  receipt 
of  the  silver  is  thus  acknowledged  in  a  letter  from 
Lord  Selkirk : 

"  LONDON,  August  4,  17  8q. 
"  Monsieur  le  Chevalier  Paul  Jones,  a  Paris. 

"  SIR  :  I  received  the  letter  you  wrote  to  me  at 
the  time  you  sent  off  my  plate,  in  order  for  restoring 
it.    Had  I  known  where  to  direct  a  letter  to  you  at 
9 


114  COMMODORE  PAUL  JONES. 

the  time  it  arrived  in  Scotland  I  would  then  have 
wrote  to  you ;  but,  not  knowing  it,  nor  finding  that 
any  of  my  acquaintance  at  Edinburgh  knew  it,  I 
was  obliged  to  delay  writing  till  I  came  here,  when, 
by  means  of  a  gentleman  connected  with  America,  I 
was  told  M.  le  Grand  was  your  banker  at  Paris,  and 
would  take  proper  care  of  a  letter  for  you  ;  therefore, 
I  inclose  this  to  him. 

"  Notwithstanding  all  the  precautions  you  took 
for  the  easy  and  uninterrupted  conveyance  of  the 
plate,  yet  it  met  with  considerable  delays :  first  at 
Calais,  next  at  Dover,  then  at  London ;  however,  it 
at  last  arrived  at  Dumfries,  and  I  dare  say  quite 
safe,  though  as  yet  I  have  not  seen  it,  being  then  at 
Edinburgh. 

"  I  intended  to  have  put  an  article  in  the  news- 
papers about  your  having  returned  it ;  but  before  I 
was  informed  of  its  being  arrived,  some  of  your 
friends,  I  suppose,  had  put  it  in  the  Dumfries  news- 
paper, whence  it  was  immediately  copied  into  the 
Edinburgh  papers,  and  thence  into  the  London 
ones.  Since  that  time  I  have  mentioned  it  to  many 
people  of  fashion ;  and,  on  all  occasions,  sir,  both 
now  and  formerly,  I  have  done  you  the  justice  to 
tell  that  you  made  an  offer  of  returning  the  plate 
very  soon  after  your  return  to  Brest ;  and,  although 
you  yourself  was  not  at  my  house,  but  remained  at 
the  shore  with  your  boat,  that  yet  you  had  your 
officers  and  men  in  such  extraordinary  good  disci- 
pline that  your  having  given  them  the  strictest  or- 
ders to  behave  well,  to  do  no  injury  of  any  kind,  to 
make  no  search,  but  only  to  bring  off  what  plate 
was  given  them ;  that  in  reality  they  did  exactly 


AN    IGNORANT   PEER.  Htj 

as  ordered,  and  that  not  one  man  offered  to  stir 
from  his  post  on  the  outside  of  the  house,  nor  en- 
tered the  doors,  nor  said  an  uncivil  word ;  that  the 
two  officers  stayed  not  a  quarter  of  an  hour  in  the 
parlour  and  butler's  pantry,  while  the  butler  got  the 
plate  together,  behaved  politely,  and  asked  for  noth- 
ing but  the  plate,  and  instantly  marched  their  men 
off  in  regular  order ;  and  that  both  officers  and  men 
behaved  in  all  respects  so  well  that  it  would  have 
done  credit  to  the  best  disciplined  troops  whatever. 
"  Some  of  the  English  newspapers  at  that  time 
having  put  in  confused  accounts  of  your  expedition 
to  Whitehaven  and  Scotland,  I  ordered  a  proper  one 
of  what  had  happened  in  Scotland  to  be  put  in  the 
London  newspapers,  by  a  gentleman  who  was  then 
at  my  house,  by  which  the  good  conduct  and  civil 
behaviour  of  your  officers  and  men  was  done  justice 
to,  and  attributed  to  your  order,  and  the  good  disci- 
pline you  maintained  over  your  people. 

"  I  am,  sir,  your  most  humble  servant, 

"  SELKIRK." 

It  is  a  handsome  acknowledgment,  but  I  note 
with  great  pleasure  the  sailor  writes  better  than  the 
peer! 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

STANDING   AND    WAITING. 

THE  Ranger  and  her  prizes  arrived  at  Brest  at  a 
.  propitious  time,  both  for  the  fortunes  of  Jones  and 
for  those  of  his  adopted  country  as  well.  The  secret 
treaty  of  alliance  between  the  confederated  colonies 
and  France  had  been  signed  on  February  6th.  The 
plenipotentiaries  from  the  United  States  had  been 
publicly  received  at  Versailles  on  March  23d.  On 
the  same  day  the  French  ambassador  left  England, 
and  the  English  ambassador,  Lord  Stormont,  left 
France.  The  fleet  of  D'Estaing  put  to  sea  from 
Toulon  a  fortnight  later.  In  two  weeks  the  English 
fleet  followed  to  American  waters.  The  attempt  was 
made  on  the  part  of  the  French  to  execute  the  bril- 
liant strategic  plan  which  Jones  had  devised,  al- 
though, of  course,  the  delay  had  rendered  the  effort 
fruitless. 

The  successful  cruise  of  the  Ranger,  the  rich 
captures  she  had  made,  the  daring  enterprises  she 
had  undertaken,  the  boldness  and  audacity  of  her 
commander  in  venturing  with  a  little  vessel  of  such 
trifling  force  into  the  very  midst  of  the  three  king- 
doms, and  the  brilliancy  of  his  capture  of  a  war  ves- 
sel of  nominally  superior,  and  at  least  really  equal, 
force,  in  a  fair  and  open  yardarm  to  yardarm  fight, 
116 


STANDING   AND   WAITING. 


117 


a  thing  to  which  the  French  navy  was  not  accus- 
tomed, awakened  the  greatest  admiration,  and  Paul 
Jones  found  himself  in  that  most  congenial  of  posi- 
tions to  him — and  to  almost  any  other  man — of  be- 
ing the  observed  of  all.  On  this  expedition,  his  first 
real  opportunity,  he  had  demonstrated  that  he  pos- 
sessed an  ability  to  plan,  and  a  courage  to  carry 
out  his  conceptions,  which' put  him  in  the  front  rank 
of  the  sea  officers  of  his  day.  With  one  single  ves- 
sel, laboring  under  every  disadvantage  conceivable, 
he  had  done  what  no  European  power  or  combina- 
tion of  powers  had  been  able  to  accomplish  in  cen- 
turies, with  all  their  resources  at  command.  He 
had  terrorized  the  whole  English  seaboard,  and  filled 
the  United  Kingdom  with  uneasiness  and  unrest. 

The  gallant  men  who  had  gone  before  him  and 
accomplished  so  much  with  the  Reprisal,  the  Re- 
venge, and  the  others,  had  a  worthy  successor  and 
superior  in  this  little  Scots-American,  who,  as  a  citi- 
zen of  the  world,  in  love  with  humanity,  drew  his 
sword  for  the  cause  of  freedom.  The  French  ad- 
mired him,  the  English  hated  him.  The  American 
prisoners  immediately  felt  the  effect  of  his  captures 
by  the  general  amelioration  of  their  unhappy  condi- 
tion, and  Franklin  at  last  realized  that  he  had  a  man 
at  hand  upon  whom  he  could  depend  to  further  his 
bold  designs.  When  the  news  reached  America,  it 
was  received  with  great  joy,  and  the  Naval  Com- 
mittee and  the  Congress  generally  knew  they  had 
made  no  mistake  in  sending  Jones  to  Europe.  The 
young  navy  looked  to  him  with  hope.  His  exploits 
were  detailed  and  amplified  in  the  cafes  and  on  the 
boulevards  of  Paris,  and  were  related  with  approba- 


Ilg  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

tion  even  within  the  sacred  confines  of  the  court. 
He  was  the  hero  of  the  hour. 

But  there  is  a  homely  maxim  exemplified  by  fre- 
quent experience  that  "  Fine  words  butter  no  par- 
snips." It  was  true  in  this  instance  undoubtedly, 
and  Jones  learned  that  there  was  no  necessary  con- 
nection between  glory  and  bread  and  butter.  He 
was  unable  to  procure  actually  necessary  supplies 
for  his  crew.  All  the  vessels  of  the  Continental 
navy  went  to  sea  undermanned,  ill-provided,  and 
inadequately  provisioned,  and  the  ship's  purser,  as 
a  rule,  had  no  money.  The  seamen  had  not  received 
their  wages — no  money  at  all,  in  fact,  except  that 
which  Jones  himself  had  advanced  out  of  his  own 
pocket.  With  the  sanction  of  the  Marine  Com- 
mittee he  had  made  himself  responsible  for  the  regu- 
lar payment  of  the  wages  of  the  men.  His  pocket 
was  now  empty,  the  last  guineas  having  been  given 
to  the  Irish  fishermen  aforementioned.  His  own 
resources  were  always  drawn  upon  freely  for  the 
good  of  the  service  and  his  men ;  now  they  were 
entirely  exhausted.  His  provisions  had  been  con- 
sumed, he  did  not  know  where  to  get  any  more. 
In  addition  to  his  own  people  he  had  'several  prizes 
and  over  two  hundred  prisoners  who  had  to  be  cared 
for,  and  who  were  a  healthy  and  hungry  lot. 

When  he  arrived  in  France  he  had  been  author- 
ized to  draw  upon  the  commissioners  to  the  extent 
of  twelve  thousand  livres,  with  the  caution  not  to 
avail  himself  of  the  permission  unless  it  were  im- 
peratively necessary.  With  great  prudence,  and  by 
the  exercise  of  rigid  economy,  he  had  avoided  any 
inroad  on  the  depleted  and  overtaxed  fund  of  the 


IN    DESPERATE   CIRCUMSTANCES. 


119 


commissioners.  Something,  however,  had  to  be 
done  in  this  instance,  and  without  securing  another 
authority,  for  which,  indeed,  time  was  wanting,  so 
pressing  were  his  needs,  he  made  drafts  upon  the 
commissioners  in  the  sum  of  twenty-four  thousand 
livres,  about  five  thousand  dollars. 

Meanwhile  he  subsisted  his  crew  and  prisoners 
through  the  generosity  of  the  French  naval  authori- 
ties at  Brest,  which  he  secured  by  the  pledge  of 
his  own  private  personal  credit.  The  draft  was  dis- 
honored. Certainly  the  commissioners  were  embar- 
rassed almost  beyond  endurance  by  the  demands 
upon  them  from  every  side,  but  this  was  a  matter  to 
which  they  should  have  given  attention  if  it  were 
humanly  possible,  for  they  were  the  only  resource 
that  Jones  had.  His  condition  was  simply  desper- 
ate. He  knew  not  what  to  do  nor  where  to  turn. 
The  following  extract  of  a  letter  to  the  commis- 
sioners on  the  27th  of  May  exhibits  his  painful  posi- 
tion : 

"  Could  I  suppose  that  my  letters  of  the  gth  and 
1 6th  current  (the  first  advising  you  of  my  arrival 
and  giving  reference  to  the  events  of  my  expedition  ; 
the  last  advising  you  of  my  draft  in  favour  of  Mon- 
sieur Bersolle,  for  twenty-four  thousand  livres,  and 
assigning  reasons  for  the  demand)  had  not  made 
due  appearance,  I  would  hereafter,  as  I  do  now, 
inclose  copies.  Three  posts  have  already  arrived 
here  from  Paris  since  Comte  d'Orvilliers  showed 
me  the  answer  which  he  received  from  the  minister, 
to  the  letter  which  inclosed  mine  to  you.  Yet  you 
remain  silent.  M.  Bersolle  has  this  moment  in- 


120  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

formed  me  of  the  fate  of  my  bills ;  the  more  extraor- 
dinary as  I  have  not  yet  made  use  of  your  letter  of 
credit  of  the  loth  of  January  last,  whereby  I  then 
seemed  entitled  to  call  for  half  the  amount  of  my 
last  draft,  and  I  did  not  expect  to  be  thought  ex- 
travagant when,  on  the  i6th  current,  I  doubled  that 
demand.  Could  this  indignity  be  kept  secret  I 
should  disregard  it ;  and,  though  it  is  already  pub- 
lic in  Brest  and  in  the  fleet,  as  it  affects  only  my 
private  credit  I  will  not  complain.  I  can  not,  how- 
ever, be  silent  when  I  find  the  public  credit  involved 
in  the  same  disgrace.  I  conceive  this  might  have 
been  prevented.  To  make  me  completely  wretched, 
Monsieur  Bersolle  has  now  told  me  that  he  now 
stops  his  hand,  not  only  of  the  necessary  articles  to 
refit  the  ship,  but  also  of  the  daily  provisions.  I 
know  not  where  to  find  to-morrow's  dinner  for  the 
great  number  of  mouths  that  depend  on  me  for  food. 
Are  then  the  Continental  ships  of  war  to  depend  on 
the  sale  of  their  prizes  for  a  daily  dinner  for  their 
men  ?  '  Publish  it  not  in  Gath.' 

"  My  officers,  as  well  as  men,  want  clothes,  and 
the  prizes  are  precluded  from  being  sold  before 
farther  orders  arrive  from  the  minister.  I  will 
ask  you,  gentlemen,  if  I  have  deserved  all  this. 
Whoever  calls  himself  an  American  ought  to  be 
protected  here.  I  am  unwilling  to  think  that 
you  have  intentionally  involved  me  in  this  dilem- 
ma, at  a  time  when  I  ought  to  expect  some  enjoy- 
ment. 

"  Therefore  I  have,  as  formerly,  the  honour  to 
be,  with  due  esteem  and  respect,  gentlemen,  yours, 
etc." 


HOLDING    HIS    PRISONERS.  12 1 

How  he  managed  under  such  circumstances  he 
relates  in  a  journal  which  he  prepared  in  later  years 
for  submission  to  the  King  of  France. 

"  Yet  during  that  time,  by  his  [Jones']  personal 
credit  with  Comte  D'Orvilliers,  the  Due  de  Chartres, 
and  the  Intendant  of  Brest,  he  fed  his  people  and 
prisoners,  cured  his  wounded,  and  refitted  both  the 
Ranger  and  the  Drake  for  sea." 

He  could,  of  course,  have  relieved  himself  of 
some  of  his  burden  by  turning  over  his  prisoners 
to  France,  but,  as  that  country  was  still  nominally 
neutral,  the  people  he  had  captured  would  have  been 
set  free  at  the  demand  of  England.  As  long  as  he 
held  possession  of  them  it  was  possible  that  the  cir- 
cumstance would  force  an  exchange  for  Americans 
— a  thing  the  commissioners  had  been  bent  upon 
s:nce  their  arrival  in  Europe.  The  English  Govern- 
ment had  long  since  sanctioned  and  carried  out  the 
exchange  of  soldiers,  but  for  arbitrary  and  inade- 
quate reasons  seamen  stood  upon  a  different  footing 
apparently.  When  Franklin  previously  wrote  Lord 
Stormont,  the  British  ambassador,  offering  to  ex- 
change one  hundred  men  captured  by  the  Reprisal 
for  an  equal  number  of  American  seamen  held  in 
English  prisons,  no  answer  was  made  to  his  letter ; 
a  second  letter  brought  forth  the  following  curt 
reply : 

"  The  king's  ambassador  receives  no  applica- 
tions from  rebels,  unless  they  come  to  implore  his 
Majesty's  mercy." 

To  this  insulting  and  inexplicable  message  the 
following  apt  and  dignified  reply  was  made : 


122  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

"  In  answer  to  a  letter. which  concerns  some  of 
the  material  interests  of  humanity,  and  of  the  two 
nations,  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States  of 
America,  now  at  war,  we  received  the  inclosed  in- 
decent paper,  as  coming  from  your  lordship,  which 
we  return  for  your  lordship's  more  mature  consid- 
eration." 

Of  course,  the  ostensible  reason  for  refusing  this 
exchange  was  that  the  captured  seamen  were 
traitors,  and  as  such  had  no  belligerent  rights,  yet 
how  they  differed  from  soldiers  it  is  impossible  to 
see.  Indeed,  the  English  authorities  went  so  far 
as  to  call  them  pirates,  and  they  could  not  have 
treated  them  worse — short  of  hanging  them — if 
they  had  actually  merited  the  opprobrious  title. 
The  real  reason,  however,  lay  in  the  hope  that  the 
Americans,  having  no  place  in  France  in  which  to 
confine  their  prisoners,  would  be  compelled  to  set 
them  free.  This  hope  was  frequently  justified,  and 
it  was  not  until  March,  1779,  that  the  persistent  de- 
termination of  Franklin  brought  about  a  complete 
general  recognition  of  the  principle  of  exchange  for 
which  he  had  so  valiantly  contended,  although  he 
had  been  partially  successful  on  particular  occasions 
before  that  time.  Jones  knew  the  situation  per- 
fectly, and  so  with  his  usual  grim  determination  he 
held  on  to  his  precious  prisoners. 

The  prize  agents  were  dilatory  and  incompetent. 
The  seamen,  lacking  food,  clothes,  salary,  and  prize 
money,  were  naturally  mutinous  and  discontented. 
But  Jones  repressed  the  crews,  hurried  up  the  sales, 
and  managed  at  last  to  weather  all  his  troubles. 


KINDNESS   TO   SIMPSON. 


I23 


The  malcontent  Simpson  was  a  constant  incen- 
tive to  discord  and  mutiny,  and  he  was  finally  re- 
moved to  a  French  guardship,  called  the  Admiral, 
where  he  was  well  treated  and  allowed  the  freedom 
of  the  deck.  While  there,  he  behaved  in  such  a 
contumacious  manner  that  D'Orvilliers,  the  French 
commander,  sent  him  to  the  prison  of  the  port.  All 
his  expenses  during  this  interval  were  paid  by  Jones 
himself;  indeed,  when  he  did  not  pay  personally, 
nobody  did.  There  was  nothing  sordid  or  avari- 
cious in  Jones'  character.  He  was  greedy  for 
glory  and  fame  and  reputation,  but  he  cared  noth- 
ing whatever  for  money.  To  dismiss  a  tiresome 
subject,  Jones,  with  extraordinary  complaisance, 
finally  accepted  Simpson's  apologies  and  released 
him  on  his  parole  not  to  serve  in  the  navy  until  he 
had  been  regularly  tried  by  a  court-martial.  He 
even  went  further  than  this.  He  offered  to  relin- 
quish the  command  of  the  Ranger  to  him  in  order 
that  he  might  take  her  back  to  the  United  States 
and  there  take  his  trial. 

While  these  efforts  were  pending,  the  commis- 
sioners, misunderstanding  their  tentative  character, 
restored  Simpson  to  the  command  of  the  Ranger, 
unconditionally,  much  to  Jones'  disgust.  He  was 
quite  willing  to  relinquish  the  command  of  his  little 
ship,  because  the  King  of  France  had  requested 
the  commissioners  to  allow  France  to  avail  herself  of 
the  services  of  Jones  in  a  naval  expedition  which 
was  projected.  But  that  such  contumacy  and  lack 
of  subordination  as  had  been  exhibited  by  Simpson 
should  go  unpunished,  and  that  he  should  receive 
the  absolute  command  of  the  ship  as  a  reward  for 


124  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

his  action,  and  should  be  allowed  to  return  home 
without  even  an  investigation,  was  not  only  harm- 
ful to  the  service,  but  an  appare'nt  reflection  upon 
himself — though,  of  course,  nothing  was  further 
from  the  commissioners'  thoughts,  as  they  specifi- 
cally declared.  In  the  end  Jones  acquiesced  in  the 
situation,  and  the  matter  was  dropped.  Simpson 
was  never  employed  in^the  service  after  he  returned 
home. 

The  famous  action  between  the  Arethusa  and 
the  Belle  Poule,  on  June  i/th,  having  made  it  clear 
to  every  observer  that  war  between  France  and 
England  was  inevitable,  though  the  formal  declara- 
tion was  not  issued  until  the  following  September, 
the  first  enterprise  which  it  was  desired  Jones  should 
undertake  under  the  auspices  of  France  was  pro- 
posed to  him  by  Franklin  as  follows : 

"  The  Jersey  privateers,"  he  says,  "  do  us  a  great 
deal  of  mischief  by  intercepting  our  supplies.  It  has 
been  mentioned  to  me.that  your  small  vessel,  com- 
manded by  so  brave  an  officer,  might  render  great 
service  by  following  them  where  greater  ships  dare 
not  venture  their  bottoms ;  or,  being  accompanied 
and  supported  by  some  frigates  from  Brest,  at  a 
proper  distance,  might  draw  them  out  and  then  take 
them.  I  wish  you  to  consider  of  this,  as  it  comes 
from  high  authority." 

It  was  not  a  particularly  brilliant  prospect ;  all 
the  hard  work  and  dangerous  labor  was  to  be  per- 
formed by  Jones,  and  the  glory  was  to  be  reaped 
by  the  French  frigates  ;  but,  with  a  noble  disinterest- 
edness in  his  desire  to  serve  his  country,  he  at  once 


VARIOUS   PROPOSITIONS.  125 

expressed  his  perfect  willingness  to  co-operate.  Be- 
fore anything  came  of  it,  however,  Franklin  offered 
him  the  command  of  the  Indien,  in  the  following 
letter : 

(Private.) 

"  DEAR  SIR  :  I  have  the  pleasure  of  informing 
you  that  it  is  proposed  to  give  you  the  command 
of  the  great  ship  we  have  built  at  Amsterdam.  By 
what  you  wrote  to  us  formerly,  I  have  ventured 
to  say  in  your  behalf,  that  this  proposition  would  be 
agreeable  to  you.  You  will  immediately  let  me 
know  your  resolution ;  which,  that  you  may  be 
more  clear  in  taking,  I  must  inform  you  of  some 
circumstances.  She  is  at  present  the  property  of 
the  king ;  but,  as  there  is  no  war  yet  declared,  you 
will  have  the  commission  and  flag  of  the  States,  and 
act  under  their  orders  and  laws.  The  Prince  de 
Nassau  will  make  the  cruise  with  you.  She  is  to 
be  brought  here  under  cover  as  a  French  merchant- 
man, to  be  equipped  and  manned  in  France.  We 
hope  to  exchange  your  prisoners  for  as  many 
American  sailors ;  but,  if  that  fails,  you  have  your 
present  crew  to  be  made  up  here  with  other  nations 
and  French.  The  other  commissioners  are  not 
acquainted  with  this  proposition  as  yet,  and  you  see 
by  the  nature  of  it  that  it  is  necessary  to  be  kept 
a  secret  till  we  have  got  the  vessel  here,  for  fear 
of  difficulties  in  Holland,  and  interception ;  you  will 
therefore  direct  your  answer  to  me  alone.  It  being 
desired  that  the  affair  rest  between  you  and  me,  per- 
haps it  may  be  best  for  you  to  take  a  trip  up  here  to 
concert  matters,  if  in  general  you  approve  the  idea. 


126  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

"  I  was  much  pleased  with  reading  your  journal, 
which  we  received  yesterday." 

This  is  the  first  mention  of  the  Prince  of  Nas- 
sau-Siegen,  who  will  appear  prominently  hereafter, 
and  be  described  in  his  proper  place.  Jones  was 
naturally  delighted  with  the  flattering  prospects, 
and  at  once  wrote  to  the  prince,  acquainting  him  of 
the  pleasure  he  anticipated  in  having  him  associ- 
ated with  him.  A  few  days  later  Franklin  wrote 
Jones  again  as  follows  : 

"  PASSY,y«H^  10,   IJfS. 

"DEAR  SIR:  I  received  yours  of  ist  instant, 
with  the  papers  inclosed,  which  I  have  shown  to 
the  other  commissioners,  but  have  not  yet  had  their 
opinion  of  them  ;  only  I  know  that  they  had  be- 
fore (in  consideration  of  the  disposition  and  uneasi- 
ness of  your  people)  expressed  an  inclination  to 
order  your  ship  directly  back  to  America.  You 
will  judge  from  what  follows  whether  it  will  not  be 
advisable  for  you  to  propose  their  sending  her  back 
with  her  people,  and  under  some  other  command. 
In  consequence  of  the  high  opinion  the  Minister 
of  the  Marine'  has  of  your  conduct  and  bravery,  it 
is  now  settled  (observe,  that  it  is  to  be  a  secret  be- 
tween us,  I  being  expressly  enjoined  not  to  com- 
municate it  to  any  other  person),  that  you  are  to 
have  the  frigate  from  Holland,  which  actually  be- 
longs to  Government,  and  will  be  furnished  with 
as  many  good  French  seamen  as  you  shall  require. 
But  you  are  to  act  under  Congress  commission.  As 
you  may  be  likely  to  have  a  number  of  Americans, 
and  your  own  are  homesick,  it  is  proposed  to  give 


FRANKLIN'S  INTENTIONS.  127 

you  as  many  as  you  can  engage  out  of  two  hun- 
dred prisoners,  which  the  ministry  of  Britain  have 
at  length  agreed  to  give  us  in  exchange  for  those 
you  have  in  your  hands.  They  propose  to  make  the 
exchange  at  Calais,  where  they  are  to  bring  the 
Americans.  Nothing  is  wanting  to  this  but  a  list 
of  yours,  containing  their  names  and  rank ;  imme- 
diately on  the  receipt  of  which  an  equal  number  are 
to  be  prepared,  and  sent  in  a  ship  to  that  port, 
where  yours  are  to  meet  them. 

"  If  by  this  means  you  can  get  a  good  new  crew, 
I  think  it  would  be  best  that  you  are  quite  free 
of  the  old,  for  a  mixture  might  introduce  the  infec- 
tion of  that  sickness  you  complain  of.  But  this  may 
be  left  to  your  own  discretion.  Perhaps  we  shall 
join  you  with  the  Providence,  Captain  Whipple,  a 
new  Continental  ship  of  thirty  guns,  which,  in  com- 
ing out  of  the  river  of  Providence,  gave  the  two 
frigates  that  were  posted  to  intercept  her  each  of 
them  so  heavy  a  dose  of  her  18-  and  12-pounders 
that  they  had  not  the  courage  or  were  not  able  to 
pursue  her.  It  seems  to  be  desired  that  you  will 
step  up  to  Versailles  (where  one  will  meet  you), 
in  order  to  such  a  settlement  of  matters  and  plans 
with  those  who  have  the  direction  as  can  not  well 
be  done  by  letter.  I  wish  it  may  be  convenient  to 
you  to  do  it  immediately. 

"  The  project  of  giving  you  the  command  of  this 
ship  pleases  me  the  more  as  it  is  a  probable  opening 
to  the  higher  preferment  you  so  justly  merit." 

In  obedience  to  this  request  Jones  went  pri- 
vately to  Versailles,  where  he  spent  some  time  in 


128  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

consultation  with  the  commissioners  and  the  French 
ministry  discussing  the  exchange  of  prisoners,  and 
proposed  several  plans  of  attack  by  which  his  serv- 
ices could  be  utilized.  These  plans  well  indicate 
the  fertility  of  imagination,  the  resourceful  genius, 
and  the  daring  hardihood  of  the  man.  One  of  them 
was  for  making  another  descent  upon  Whitehaven, 
another  was  to  attack  the  Bank  of  Ayr  and  destroy 
or  ransom  that  town ;  another  was  to  burn  the  ship- 
ping on  the  Clyde.  Expeditions  on  the  coast  of  Ire- 
land were  suggested.  London  might  be  distressed, 
he  thought,  by  cutting  off  the  supplies  of  coal  from 
Newcastle ;  but  the  most  feasible  projects  were  the 
capture  or  destruction  of  the  West  Indian  or  Baltic 
fleets  of  merchantmen  or  the  Hudson  Bay  ships. 

The  Minister  of  Marine,  M.  de  Sartine,  lent  an 
attentive  ear  to  all  of  the  plans  which  were  pro- 
posed, and  Jones  returned  to  Brest  with  high  hopes 
that  he  should  be  soon  employed  in  an  expedition  to 
carry  out  one  or  the  other  of  these  plans  with  ade- 
quate means  to  do  it  well.  It  is  quite  likely  that 
the  minister  was  as  earnest  and  honest  in  his  in- 
tentions as  the  king  in  his  desire  to  make  use  of 
Jones,  but  the  formal  declaration  of  war  rendered 
it  possible  to  prosecute  the  enterprises  which  had 
been  suggested  by  Jones,  if  it  were  thought  expedi- 
ent to  attempt  them,  under  the  French  flag  and 
with  French  officers.  As  France  had  only  intended 
to  use  him  under  the  cover  of  the  American  fbg  to 
harass  England  before  war  was  declared,  and  as 
that  could  now  be  done  openly  under  her  own  flag, 
they  did  not  see  the  same  necessity  for  his  services 
as  before. 


DISAPPOINTMENTS. 


129 


The  matter  of  finding  employment  for  him  was 
further  complicated  by  the  fact  that  since  a  state 
of  actual  war  existed  the  ministry  was  besieged  with 
applications  from  numbers  of  French  officers  for 
command,  and  the  ships  which  had  been  proposed 
for  Jones  were  naturally  appropriated  to  the  French 
themselves.  Even  if  a  command  could  have  been 
found  for  the  American,  there  would  have  been  a 
natural  disinclination,  so  great  as  to  be  nearly  pro- 
hibitive of  success,  on  the  part  of  the  French  offi- 
cers to  serving  under  a  foreigner.  Time  brought 
him  nothing  but  disappointment,  and  the  high 
hopes  he  had  cherished  gradually  waned. 

Always  a  persistent  and  voluminous  letter 
writer,  in  his  desperation  he  overwhelmed  every- 
body with  correspondence.  Inaction  was  killing  to 
him.  Not  to  be  employed  was  like  death  itself  to 
a  man  of  his  intensely  energetic  temperament.  His 
pride  would  not  permit  him  to  return  to  the  United 
States  and  seek  a  command  when  he  had  specifically 
announced,  in  a  letter  to  Congress  by  the  returning 
Ranger,  that  the  King  of  France  asked  that  he 
might  make  use  of  his  services,  and  therefore  no 
command  in  America  need  be  reserved  for  him ;  and 
yet  he  now  found  himself  a  hanger  on  the  outskirts 
of  a  court  and  a  ministry  which  had  no  further  use 
for  him. 

The  delicate  situation  of  the  commissioners, 
who  had  been  themselves  scarcely  more  than  on 
sufferance,  did  not  permit  them,  in  the  interests  of 
expediency  and  diplomacy,  to  insist  as  strongly  as 
they  would  have  liked  to  do,  that  the  king  and  the 

ministry  should  keep  their  engagement  with  Jones, 
10 


!3o  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

which  was,  erf  course,  an  engagement  with  them  and 
with  the  United  States.  Diplomacy  and  persuasion 
were  the  only  weapons  at  their  command.  They 
certainly  made  good  use  of  them.  Franklin,  pend- 
ing something  else,  procured  the  minister's  order 
that  Jones  should  be  received  on  the  great  French 
fleet  of  D'Orvilliers,  which  was  about  to  put  to  sea 
to  engage  the  English  fleet  under  Keppel.  He 
was  very  desirous  of  availing  himself  of  this  in- 
vitation, which  he  himself  sought,  for  it  would 
give  him  an  opportunity  he  could  not  otherwise 
hope  to  enjoy,  of  perfecting  himself  in  naval  tactics 
and  the  fine  art  of  maneuvering  and  governing  a 
great  fleet.  He  never  allowed  anything  to  interfere 
— so  far  as  he  was  able  to  prevent  it — with  his  ad- 
vancement in  professional  study.  The  permission, 
however,  to  D'Orvilliers'  great  regret,  arrived  too 
late,  for  the  fleet  sailed  without  him.  The  French 
admiral  seems  to  have  appreciated  the  American 
captain,  and  to  have  highly  esteemed  him.  It  is 
stated  that  the  delay  in  transmitting  the  permission 
was  intentional,  and  was  due  to  the  jealousy  of  the 
French  naval  service. 

Jones  was  exasperated  by  all  these  happenings 
almost  to  the  breaking  point.  In  one  letter  he  says  : 
"  I  think  of  going  to  L'Orient,  being  heartily  sick 
of  Brest."  I  should  think  he  would  be!  As  days 
passed  without  bringing  him  any  nearer  to  the  frui- 
tion of  his  hope,  he  became  more  modest  in  his 
demands  and  propositions.  One  significant  phrase 
culled  from  one  of  his  letters  well  indicates  the 
bold,  dashing  character  of  the  man  :  "  I  do  not  wish 
to  have  command  of  any  ship  that  does  not  sail  fast, 


AN    EMPHATIC   PROTEST.  131 

for  I  intend  to  go  in  harm's  way."  *  In  the  sentence 
which  follows  this  statement,  we  get  another  touch 
of  that  entire  consciousness  of  his  own  ability  and 
high  quality  which,  though  warranted,  it  were  bet- 
ter, perhaps,  for  his  reputation  if  it  were  not  so 
evident  in  his  writing :  "  I  know,  I  believe,  that  this 
is  no  other  person's  intention.  Therefore,  buy  a 
frigate  that  sails  fast  and  is  sufficiently  large  to  carry 
twenty-six  or  twenty-eight  guns  on  one  deck." 

His  state  of  mind  may  well  be  understood  from 
this  citation :  "  I  have,  to  show  my  gratitude  to 
France,  lost  so  much  time,  and  with  it  such  oppor- 
tunities as  I  can  not  regain.  I  have  almost  killed 
myself  with  grief." 

Chafing,  fretting,  writing  letters,  the  time 
dragged  on.  At  last  he  addressed  to"  the  Minister 
of  Marine,  M.  de  Sartine,  this  emphatic  protest  and 
statement  which  he  calls,  and  justly,  an  explicit  let- 
ter. It  is  certainly  sufficiently  definite  and  clear, 
and  shows  that  rank  and  position  did  not  deter  him 
from  a  free  and  somewhat  sarcastic  expression  of 
his  grievances  and  wrongs  : 

"  BREST,  September  /j>,  //7<?. 

"  HONOURED  SIR  :  When  his  excellency  Doctor 
Franklin  informed  me  that  you  had  condescended 
to  think  me  worthy  of  your  notice,  I  took  such  pleas- 
ure in  reflecting  on  the  happy  alliance  between 
France  and  America  that  I  was  really  flattered,  and 
entertained  the  most  grateful  sense  of  the  honour 
which  you  proposed  for  me,  as  well  as  the  favour 
which  the  king  proposed  for  America,  by  putting 

*  Italics  mine. 


1 32  COMMODORE  PAUL  JONES, 

so  fine  a  ship  as  the  Indien  under  my  command, 
and  under  its  flag,  with  unlimited  orders. 

"  In  obedience  to  your  desire,  I  came  to  Ver- 
sailles, and  was  taught  to  believe  that  my  intended 
ship  was  in  deep  water,  and  ready  for  sea ;  but  when 
the  Prince  [de  Nassau]  returned  I  received  from 
him  a  different  account ;  I  was  told  that  the  Indien 
could  not  be  got  afloat  within  a  shorter  period  than 
three  months  at  the  approaching  equinox. 

"  To  employ  this  interval  usefully,  I  first  offered 
to  go  from  Brest  with  Count  D'Orvilliers  as  a  vol- 
unteer, which  you  thought  fit  to  reject.  I  had  then 
the  satisfaction  to  find  that  you  approved  in  general 
of  a  variety  of  hints  for. private  enterprises  which 
I  had  drawn  up  for  your  consideration,  and  I  was 
flattered  with -assurances  from  Messieurs  de  Chau- 
mont  and  Baudouin  that  three  of  the  finest  frigates 
in  France,  with  two  tenders  and  a  number  of 
troops,  would  be  immediately  put  under  my  com- 
mand ;  and  that  I  should  have  unlimited  orders,  and 
be  at  free  liberty  to  pursue  such  of  my  own  projects 
as  I  thought  proper.  But  this  plan  fell  to  nothing 
in  the  moment  when  I  was  taught  to  think  that 
nothing  was  wanting  but  the  king's  signature. 

"  Another  much  inferior  armament  from 
L'Orient  was  proposed  to  be  put  under  my  com- 
mand, which  was  by  no  means  equal  to  the  services 
that  were  expected  from  it;  for  speed  and  force, 
though  both  requisite,  were  both  wanting.  Hap- 
pily for  me,  this  also  failed,  and  I  was  thereby  saved 
from  a  dreadful  prospect  of  ruin  and  dishonour. 

"  I  had  so  entire  a  reliance  that  you  would  de- 
sire nothing  of  me  inconsistent  with  my  honour  and 


AN   EMPHATIC    PROTEST. 


133 


rank,  that  the  moment  you  required  me  to  come 
down  here,  in  order  to  proceed  round  to  St.  Malo, 
though  I  had  received  no  written  orders,  and 
neither  knew  your  intention  respecting  my  destina- 
tion or  command,  1  obeyed  with  such  haste,  that 
although  my  curiosity  led  me  to  look  at  the  arma- 
ment at  L'Orient,  yet  I  was  but  three  days  from 
Passy  till  I  reached  Brest.  Here,  too,  I  drew  a 
blank ;  but  when  I  saw  the  Lively  it  was  no  dis- 
appointment, as  that  ship,  both  in  sailing  and  equip- 
ment, is  far  inferior  to  the  Ranger. 

"  My  only  disappointment  here  was  my  being 
precluded  from  embarking  in  pursuit  of  marine 
knowledge  with  Count  D'Orvilliers,  who  did  not 
sail  till  seven  days  after  my  return.  He  is  my  friend, 
and  expressed  his  wishes  for  my  company;  I  ac- 
companied him  out  of  the  road  when  the  fleet  sailed, 
and  he  always  lamented  that  neither  himself  nor 
any  person  in  authority  in  Brest  had  received  from 
you  any  order  that  mentioned  my  name.  I  am 
astonished  therefore  to  be  informed  that  you  attrib- 
ute my  not  being  in  the  fleet  to  my  stay  at  L'Orient. 

"  I  am  not  a  mere  adventurer  of  fortune.  Stimu- 
lated by  principles  of  reason  and  philanthropy,  I  laid 
aside  my  enjoyments  in  private  life,  and  embarked 
under  the  flag  of  America  when  it  was  first  dis- 
played. In  that  line  my  desire  of  fame  is  infinite, 
and  I  must  not  now  so  far  forget  my  own  honour, 
and  what  I  owe  to  my  friends  and  America,  as  to 
remain  inactive. 

"  My  rank  knows  no  superior  in  the  American 
marine.  I  have  long  since  been  appointed  to  com- 
mand an  expedition  with  five  of  its  ships,  and  I  can 


134  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

receive  orders  from  no  junior  or  inferior  officer 
whatever. 

"  I  have  been  here  in  the  most  tormenting  sus- 
pense for  more  than  a  month  since  my  return ;  and, 
agreeable  to  your  desire,  as  mentioned  to  me  by 
Monsieur  Chaumont,  a  lieutenant  has  been  ap- 
pointed, and  is  with  me,  who  speaks  the  French  as 
well  as  the  English.  Circular  letters  have  been 
written,  and  sent  the  8th  of  last  month  from  the 
English  admiralty,  because  they  expected  me  to 
pay  another  visit  with  four  ships.  Therefore  I  trust 
that,  if  the  Indien  is  not  to  be  got  out,  you  will 
not,  at  the  approaching  season,  substitute  a  force 
that  is  not  at  least  equal  both  in  strength  and  sailing 
to  any  of  the  enemy's  cruising  ships. 

"  I  do  not  wish  to  interfere  with  the  harmony  of 
the  French  marine ;  but,  if  I  am  still  thought  worthy 
of  your  attention,  I  shall  hope  for  a  separate  com- 
mand, with  liberal  orders.  If,  on  the  contrary,  you 
should  now  have  no  further  occasion  for  my  ser- 
vices, the  only  favour  I  can  ask  is  that  you  will 
bestow  on  me  the  Alert,  with  a  few  seamen,  and 
permit  me  to  return,  and  carry  with  me  your  good 
opinion  in  that  small  vessel,  before  the  winter,  to 
America." 

Hjs  intense,  burning  desire  for  action,  however, 
did  not  permit  him  to  degrade,  as  he  thought,  his 
Government  and  station  by  accepting  the  command 
of  a  privateer  which  was  tendered  to  him.  In  the 
command  of  a  speedy,  smart  privateer  there  is  no 
limit  to  the  plundering  he  might  have  done  and 
the  treasure  he  might  have  gained,  if  that  had  been 


REFUSES   A   PRIVATEER. 


135 


what  he  wished.  Many  naval  officers  before  and 
since  his  time  have  done  this  and  thought  it  not 
derogatory  to  their  dignity.  It  is  therefore  to 
Jones'  credit  that  he  was  very  jealous  in  this  and 
many  other  instances  on  the  point  of  honor  of  serv- 
ing in  no  ship,  under  no  flag,  and  with  no  commis- 
sion save  that  of  the  United  States.  We  shall  see 
this  spirit  again  and  again.  The  citizen  of  the  world 
was  beginning  to  feel  that  the  world  as  his  country 
was  hardly  adequate  to  his  needs ;  in  theory  it  was  a 
very  pretty  proposition,  but  in  practice  it  was  neces- 
sary to  form  and  maintain  a  more  definite  and  par- 
ticular relationship.  As  a  final  effort  to  better  his 
condition  and  secure  that  opportunity  for  which  he 
thirsted,  he  prepared  the  following  letter  to  the 
king: 

"  BREST,  October  19,  1778. 

"  SIRE:  After  my  return  to  Brest  in  the  Ameri- 
can ship  of  war  the  Ranger,  from  the  Irish  Chan- 
nel, his  excellency  Doctor  Franklin  informed  me 
by  letter,  dated  June  the  ist,  that  M.  de  Sartine, 
having  a  high  opinion  of  my  conduct  and  bravery, 
had  determined,  with  your  Majesty's  consent  and 
approbation,  to  give  me  the  command  of  the  ship  of 
war  the  Indien,  which  was  built  at  Amsterdam  for 
America,  but  afterward,  for  political  reasons,  made 
the  property  of  France. 

"  I  was  to  act  with  unlimited  orders  under  the 
commission  and  flag  of  America ;  and  the  Prince  de 
Nassau  proposed  to  accompany  me  on  the  ocean. 

"  I  was  deeply  penetrated  with  the  sense  of  the 
honour  done  me  by  this  generous  proposition,  as 
well  as  of  the  favour  your  Majesty  intended  thereby 


136  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

to  confer  on  America.  And  I  accepted  the  offer 
with  the  greater  pleasure  as  the  Congress  had  sent 
me  to  Europe  in  the  Ranger  to  command  the  In- 
dien  before  the  ownership  of  that  vessel  was 
changed. 

"  The  minister  desired  to  see  me  at  Versailles  to 
settle  future  plans  of  operation,  and  I  attended  him 
for  that  purpose.  I  was  told  that  the  Indien  was  at 
the  Texel  completely  armed  and  fitted  for  sea;  but 
the  Prince  de  Nassau  was  sent  express  to  Holland, 
and  returned  with  a  very  different  account.  The 
ship  was  at  Amsterdam,  and  could  not  be  got 
afloat  or  armed  before  the  September  equinox.  The 
American  plenipotentiaries  proposed  that  I  should 
return  to  America;  and,  as  I  have  repeatedly  been 
appointed  to  the  chief  command  of  an  American 
squadron  to  execute  secret  enterprises,  it  was  not 
doubted  but  that  Congress  would  again  show  me 
a  preference.  M.  de  Sartine,  however,  thought 
proper  to  prevent  my  departure,  by  writing  to  the 
plenipotentiaries  (without  my  knowledge),  request- 
ing that  I  might  be  permitted  to  remain  in  Europe, 
and  that  the  Ranger  might  be  sent  back  to  America 
under  another  commander,  he  having  special  ser- 
vices which  he  wished  me  to  execute.  This  request 
they  readily  granted,  and  I  was  flattered  by  the 
prospect  of  being  enabled  to  testify,  by  my  services, 
my  gratitude  to  your  Majesty,  as  the  first  prince 
who  has  so  generously  acknowledged  our  independ- 
ence. 

'*  There  was  an  interval  of  more  than  three 
months  before  the  Indien  could  be  gotten  afloat. 
To  employ  that  period  usefully,  when  your  Majes- 


LETTER    TO   THE   KING. 


137 


ty's  fleet  was  ordered  to  sail  from  Brest,  I  proposed 
to  the  minister  to  embark  in  it  as  a  volunteer,  in 
pursuit  of  marine  knowledge.  He  objected  to  this, 
at  the  same  time  approved  of  a  variety  of  hints  for 
private  enterprises,  which  I  had  drawn  up  for  his 
consideration.  Two  gentlemen  were  appointed  to 
settle  with  me  the  plans  that  were  to  be  adopted, 
who  gave  me  the  assurance  that  three  of  the  best 
frigates  in  France,  with  two  tenders,  and  a  num- 
ber of  troops,  should  be  immediately  put  under  my 
command,  to  pursue  such  of  my  own  projects  as  I 
thought  proper ;  but  this  fell  to  nothing,  when  I 
believed  that  your  Majesty's  signature  only  was 
wanting. 

"  Another  armament,  composed  of  cutters  and 
small  vessels,  at  L'Orient,  was  proposed  to  be  put 
under  my  command,  to  alarm  the  coasts  of  England 
and  check  the  Jersey  privateers ;  but  happily  for 
me  this  also  failed,  and  I  was  saved  from  ruin  and 
dishonour,  as  I  now  find  that  all  the  vessels  sailed 
slow,  and  their  united  force  is  very  insignificant. 
The  minister  then  thought  fit  that  I  should  return 
to  Brest  to  command  the  Lively,  and  join  some 
frigates  on  an  expedition  from  St.  Malo  to  the  North 
Sea.  I  returned  in  haste  for  that  purpose,  and 
found  that  the  Lively  had  been  bestowed  at  Brest 
before  the  minister  had  mentioned  that  ship  to  me 
at  Versailles.  This  was,  however,  another  fortu- 
nate disappointment,  as  the  Lively  proves,  both  in 
sailing  and  equipment,  much  inferior  to  the  Ranger ; 
but,  more  especially,  if  it  be  true,  as  I  have  since 
understood,  that  the  minister  intended  to  give  the 
chief  command  of  an  expedition  to  a  lieutenant, 


138  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

which  would  have  occasioned  a  very  disagreeable 
misunderstanding;  for,  as  an  officer  of  the  first 
rank  in  the  American  marine,  who  has  ever  been 
honoured  with  the  favour  and  friendship  of  Con- 
gress, I  can  receive  orders  from  no  inferior  officer 
whatever.  My  plan  was  the  destruction  of  the  Eng- 
lish Baltic  fleet,  of  great  consequence  to  the  enemy's 
marine,  and  then  only  protected  by  a  single  frigate. 
I  would  have  held  myself  responsible  for  its  success 
had  I  commanded  the  expedition. 

"  M.  de  Sartine  afterward  sent  orders  to  Count 
D'Orvilliers  to  receive  me  on  board  the  fleet  agree- 
ably to  my  former  proposal ;  but  the  order  did  not 
arrive  until  after  the  departure  of  the  fleet  the  last 
time  from  Brest,  nor  was  I  made  acquainted  with 
the  circumstance  before  the  fleet  returned  here. 

"  Thus  have  I  been  chained  down  to  shameful 
inactivity  for  nearly  five  months.  I  have  lost  the 
best  season  of  the  year,  and  such  opportunities  of 
serving  my  country  and  acquiring  honour  as  I  can 
not  again  expect  this  war ;  and,  to  my  infinite  mor- 
tification, having  no  command,  I  am  considered 
everywhere  an  officer  cast  off  and  in  disgrace  for 
secret  reasons. 

"  I  have  written  respectful  letters  to  the  minister, 
none  of  which  he  has  condescended  to  answer;  I 
have  written  to  the  Prince  de  Nassau  with  as  little 
effect ;  and  I  do  not  understand  that  any  apology 
has  been  made  to  the  great  and.  venerable  Dr. 
Franklin,  whom  the  minister  has  made  the  instru- 
ment of  bringing  me  into  such  unmerited  trouble. 

"  Having  written  to  Congress  to  reserve  no 
command  for  me  in  America,  my  sensibility  is  the 


LETTER    TO   THE    KING. 


139 


more  affected  by  this  unworthy  situation  in  the  sight 
of  your  Majesty's  fleet.  I,  however,  make  no  re- 
mark on  the  treatment  I  have  received. 

"  Although  I  wish  not  to  become  my  own  pane- 
gyrist, I  must  beg  your  Majesty's  permission  to  ob- 
serve that  I  am  not  an  adventurer  in  search  of  for- 
tune, of  which,  thank  God,  I  have  a  sufficiency. 

"  When  the  American  banner  was  first  displayed 
I  drew  my  sword  in  support  of  the  violated  dignity 
and  rights  of  human  nature ;  and  both  honour  and 
duty  prompt  me  steadfastly  to  continue  the  right- 
eous pursuit,  and  to  sacrifice  to  it  not  only  my  own 
private  enjoyments,  but  even  life,  if  necessary.  I 
must  acknowledge  that  the  generous  praise  which 
I  have  received  from  Congress  and  others  exceeds 
the  merit  of  my  past  services,  therefore  I  the  more 
ardently  wish  for  future  opportunities  of  testifying 
my  gratitude  by  my  activity. 

"  As  your  Majesty,  by  espousing  the  cause  of 
America,  hath  become  the  protector  of  the  rights  of 
human  nature,  I  am  persuaded  that  you  will  not  dis- 
regard my  situation,  nor  suffer  me  to  remain  any 
longer  in  this  unsupportable  disgrace. 

"  I  am,  with  perfect  gratitude  and  profound  re- 
spect, Sire,  your  Majesty's  very  obliged,  very  obedi- 
ent, and  very  humble  servant, 

"  J.  PAUL  JONES." 

This  letter,-at  once  dignified,  forceful,  respectful, 
and  modest,  was  inclosed  to  Dr.  Franklin  with  the 
request  that  it  should  be  delivered  to  the  king.  The 
deference  paid  to  Franklin's  opinion,  the  eager  de- 
sire to  please  him,  the  respect  in  which  he  held  him, 


I40  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

is  not  the  least  pleasing  feature  of  Jones'  character, 
by  the  way.  The  letter  in  question  was  withheld  by 
Franklin  with  Jones'  knowledge  and  acquiescence, 
and  the  king,  it  is  probable,  never  saw  it.  There 
was,  in  fact,  no  necessity  for  its  delivery,  for  the 
appeals,  prayers,  and  importunities  had  at  last 
evoked  a  response.  The  minister,  worn  out  by  the 
persistence  of  Jones,  determined,  since  none  of  the 
French  naval  vessels  were  available,  to  buy  him  a 
ship  and  assemble  a  squadron  and  send  him  forth. 

The  inquiry  naturally  arises  why  the  French 
Government  should  care  to  go  to  the  trouble  and 
expense  of  doing  this.  Before  the  war  was  declared 
their  action  was  understandable,  but  afterward  the 
then  operating  cause  disappeared.  Yet  there  was 
another  reason  aside  from  the  fact  that  M.  de  Sar- 
.  tine  was  willing  to  keep  his  promise  if  he  could,  and 
that  was  this : 

It  was  not  the  custom  to  harry,  plunder,  and 
ravage  the  seacoasts  in  the  wars  between  France 
and  England.  Military  or  naval  forces  were  the 
sole  objects  of  attack,  and  by  a  specific  though  un- 
written law  of  custom,  the  efforts  of  the  rival  com- 
batants were  confined  to  ships  of  war,  fortifications, 
and  armies,  and,  of  course,  to  merchant  vessels  be- 
longing to  the  enemy.  The  peaceful  seashore 
towns  were  generally  let  alone  unless  the  inhabit- 
ants in  exposed  localities  provoked  retaliation  by 
aggression — a  thing  they  usually  took  good  care 
not  to  do.  To  introduce  the  practice  would  be  un- 
fortunate and  nothing  would  be  gained,  by  France 
especially.  The  King  of  France,  however,  was  more 
than  willing  to  have  the  coasts  of  his  neighbor  rav- 


REASONS  FOR  FRENCH  ACTION. 


141 


aged,  if  no  retaliation  on  his  own  unprotected  shores 
were  provoked  thereby.  No  convention  of  any  sort, 
expressed  or  understood,  existed  between  Great 
Britain  and  the  United  States  which  would  prevent 
such  action  on  the  part  of  the  Americans.  Great 
liritain  was  making  a  bloody  ravaging  warfare  on 
the  coasts  of  North  America,  and,  never  dreaming 
of  reprisal,  paid  no  attention  whatever  to  this  law  of 
war,  save  when  it  suited  her  to  do  so,  on  our  sea- 
board. Franklin  and  the  commissioners  wisely  real- 
ized that  the  only  way  to  stop  this  merciless  and 
brutal  burning  and  plundering  was  to  let  the  enemy 
experience  the  thing  himself.  They  were  therefore 
in  entire  accord  with  the  desire  of  the  French  king. 
To  produce  the  result  he  would  furnish  the  squad- 
ron, they  the  flag.  It  was  a  charming  arrangement 
from  the  king's  point  of  view.  Consequently  the 
reason  for  the  encouragement  given  Jones  is  ap- 
parent, and  the  determination  of  the  minister  is 
therefore  explained  and  understood. 

Jones  received  word  early  in  November  through 
the  commissioners,  with  a  solemn  assurance  from 
De  Sartine,  that  a  suitable  ship  would  be  purchased 
for  him  at  the  expense  of  France  and  a  squadron 
assembled  under  his  supreme  command.  Let  those 
who  would  reproach  Jones  for  his  part  in  this  plan 
remember  that  (as  in  his  previous  cruise)  he  only 
carried  out  the  orders  of  Franklin.  There  was  no 
sentimental  nonsense  about  the  old  Quaker.  He 
knew  what  was  the  best  remedy  for  the  deplorable 
conditions  in  America,  and  he  grimly  prepared  to 
apply  it.  He  had  no  illusions  in  the  premises  at  all ; 
it  was  a  pure  matter  of  business,  and  with  sound 


142  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

policy  he  so  treated  it.  Jones'  appeals,  be  it  under- 
stood, were  only  for  a  ship  or  ships  and  an  oppor- 
tunity to  get  into  action  with  the  enemy.  His  orders 
were  outside  of  his  control.  All  he  had  to  do  as  a 
naval  officer  was  to  carry  them  out  to  the  best  of 
his  ability  when  he  received  them.  Therefore  a  cen- 
sure of  Jones  is  a  censure  of  Franklin. 

It  was  first  designed  to  employ  Jones  and  his 
proposed  squadron  for  a  descent  upon  Liverpool, 
for  which  purpose  five  hundred  men  from  Fitz- 
maurice's  Irish  regiment  were  to  be  taken  on  the 
ships.  Pending  the  assembling  of  the  squadron, 
and  while  Jones  was  busily  engaged  in  seeking  for 
a  proper  vessel  for  himself  in  various  French  ports, 
Lafayette  arrived  from  America,  and  sought  the 
command  of  the  land  forces  of  the  proposed  expedi- 
tion. His  desire  was  a  notable  tribute  to  the  sailor, 
by  the  way.  The  change  was  most  agreeable  to 
Jones,  to  whom,  of  course,  the  reputation  and  abili- 
ties of  Lafayette  were  well  known,  and  who  would 
naturally  prefer  association  with  such  a  distin- 
guished man  in  the  undertaking,  but,  as  usual,  there 
were  delays  on  the  part  of  the  minister. 

Jones  traveled  about  from  port  to  port,  look- 
ing at  different  ships  which  it  was  proposed  to  pur- 
chase for  him.  The  minister  offered  him  the  Due 
de  Broglie,  a  large  new  ship  lying  at  Nantes,  capable 
of  mounting  sixty-four  guns.  He  inspected  her, 
and  would  have  taken  her  gladly,  but  he  felt  utterly 
unable  properly  to  man  such  a  large  ship,  and  he  was 
reluctantly  compelled  to  dismiss  her  from  considera- 
tion. There  was  also  at  Nantes  a  smaller  ship,  the 
Ariel,  of  twenty  guns,  which  had  been  captured 


STANDING   AND   WAITING   STILL.  143 

from  the  English,  which  he  was  willing  to  accept  if 
nothing  better  turned  up.  Another  vessel  that  he 
looked  at  was  a  great  old-fashioned  merchant  ship, 
lying  dismantled  at  L/Orient,  which  had  been  some 
fourteen  years  in  the  India  trade,  and  was  very 
much  out  of  repair.  She  was  called  the  Due  de 
Duras.  Jones  thought  she  might  do  in  default  of 
anything  else,  and  he  so  informed  the  minister. 

However,  in  spite  of  the  promises  that  had  been 
made  and  reiterated  to  him,  and  the  determination 
which  had  been  arrived  at,  nothing  was  done.  His 
visits  of  inspection  were  fruitless,  his  propositions 
were  disregarded  as  before.  Furthermore,  the  plan 
to  send  Lafayette  with  him  fell  through  because 
France  was  at  that  time  projecting  a  grand  descent 
in  force  upon  England,  and  Lafayette  was  desig- 
nated to  command  a  regiment  in  the  proposed  un- 
dertaking. Like  other  similar  projects,  the  plan 
was  never  put  in  operation.  Though  France  did 
enter  the  Channel  with  sixty-six  French  and  Spanish 
ships  of  the  line,  she  did  not  accomplish  as  much 
with  this  great  armada  as  Paul  Jones  did  with  the 
little  squadron  he  finally  was  enabled  to  assemble. 

Meanwhile  he  was  at  his  wits'  end.  The  year 
had  nearly  passed  and  nothing  had  been  done.  He 
had  been  put  off  with  promises  until  he  was  desper- 
ate. Chance,  it  is  stated,  threw  in  his  way  one  day, 
as  he  sat  idle  at  Nantes,  gloomily  ruminating  on 
-the  prospect,  or  lack  of  it,  and  almost  making  up 
his  mind  to  go  back  to  the  United  States  in  the 
first  vessel  that  offered  and  seek  such  opportunity 
for  service  as  might  arise  there,  a  copy  of  Franklin's 
famous  book  of  maxims,  called  Poor  Richard's  Al- 


I44  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

manac.  As  the  harassed  little  captain  sat  listlessly 
turning  its  pages,  his  eyes  fell  upon  this  signifi- 
cant aphorism  : 

"  If  a  man  wishes  to  have  any  business  faith- 
fully and  expeditiously  performed,  let  him  go  on 
it  himself;  otherwise  he  may  send." 

The  truth  of  the  saying  inspired  him  to  one  final 
ejfort  before  he  abandoned  European  waters.  He 
went  to  Versailles  in  November,  1778,  for  one  last 
visit,  and  there  settled  the  matter.  His  determina- 
tion and  persistence  at  last,  as  it  had  many  times 
before,  brought  him  success.  De  Sartine  directed 
the  purchase  of  the  Duras,  which  Jones,  from  his 
love  for  Franklin  and  the  circumstance  just  related, 
with  the  consent  of  the  minister,  renamed  the  Bon 
Homme  Richard,  that  being  the  French  equivalent 
for  Poor  Richard,  or  Good  Man  Richard,  which 
was  the  caption  of  the  almanac. 

De  Sartine  appointed  as  the  agent  and  commis- 
sary of  the  king  for  the  purchase  and  refitting  of 
the  Duras  and  the  other  vessels  of  the  squadron,  and 
for  the  disposal  of  any  prizes  which  might  be  taken, 
in  short,  as  his  representative  with  entire  liberty 
of  action,  Monsieur  le  Ray  de  Chaumont.  This 
gentleman,  belonging,  of  course,  to  the  nobility  of 
the  country,  was  a  man  of  considerable  influence  at 
the  court,  where  he  had  held  the  responsible  dual 
position  of  Grand  Master  of  the  Forests  and  Waters 
of  the  King.  Since  the  arrival  of  the  American  com- 
missioners he  had  shown  his  devotion  to  the  cause 
of  liberty  and  to  them  personally  by  many  and  con- 
spicuous acts  of  kindness. 
..  It  was  his  private  residence  at  Passy  that  Frank- 


LE   RAY   DE   CHAUMONT.  145 

lin  made  his  headquarters  during  his  long  tenure 
of  office.  De  Chaumont  had  offered  him  the  use 
of  this  house,  and  with  generous  and  splendid 
hospitality  had  refused  to  accept  of  any  remunera- 
tion by  way  of  rental.  Realizing  the  pressing  neces- 
sity of  the  struggling  colonists  for  every  dollar  they 
could  scrape  together,  he  positively  declined  to  im- 
pair their  limited  resources  by  any  charge  whatso- 
ever. Franklin  endeavored  to  change  his  decision, 
and  when  John  Adams  replaced  Deane  he  made  the 
same  effort,  but  the  generous  Frenchman  refused 
to  recede  from  his  determination.  He  also  placed 
his  private  purse  at  the  disposal  of  Franklin,  and 
in  every  way  showed  himself  a  worthy  and  disinter- 
ested friend  of  America. 

He  was  one  of  those  romantic  Frenchmen  who 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  rights  of  man  under  the 
influence  of  the  new  philosophy  of  Rousseau  and 
Voltaire ;  somewhat,  it  would  seem,  from  motives 
similar  to  those  proclaimed  by  Jones  himself.  He 
had  nothing  to  gain  by  his  action  and  much  to  lose 
should  the  effort  of  the  colonists  result  in  failure. 
He  was  a  man  of  affairs  and  possessed  an  ample 
fortune.  To  anticipate  events,  it  may  be  stated  that 
he  spent  it  all  in  the  cause  to  which  he  had  devoted 
himself,  and  eventually  became  bankrupt.  He  was 
not  a  military  man  ;  still  less  was  he  aware  of  the  exi- 
gencies and  demands  of  the  naval  service.  For  the 
present,  however,  he  did  his  work  efficiently  and 
well. 

The  Duras  was  purchased  immediately,  as  were 
two  other  merchant  vessels,  the  Pallas  and  the  Ven- 
geance, all  at  the  cost  of  the  royal  treasury.  To 
ii 


146  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

these  were  added  the  Cerf,  a  king's  cutter,  a  well- 
appointed  and  efficient  vessel,  and  the  United  States 
ship  Alliance,  a  new  and  very  handsome  frigate  built 
at  Salisbury,  Massachusetts,  in  1778,  which  had 
arrived  in  Europe  with  Lafayette  as  a  passenger. 
Jones  had  specifically  asked  that  the  American 
frigate  should  be  assigned  to  his  squadron — a  most 
unfortunate  request,  as  it  afterward  turned  out. 

The  Duras  was  an  East  Indiaman  of  obsolete 
type ;  a  large,  old-fashioned  ship  with .  a  very  high 
poop  and  topgallant  forecastle.  She  had  made,  dur- 
ing many  years  of  service,  a  number  of  round  voy- 
ages to  the  East  Indies.  While  stoutly  built  for  a 
merchant  ship,  as  compared  to  a  man-of-war  of  her 
size  she  was  of  light  and  unsubstantial  frame.  In 
the  absence  of  particular  information  I  suppose  her 
to  have  been  of  something  under  eight  hundred 
tons  burden.  Neglect  had  allowed  her  to  fall  into 
such  a  .bad  condition  that  her  efficiency  as  a  pro- 
posed war  vessel  was  further  impaired  by  her  in- 
ability to  stand  the  necessary  repairs. 

Jones,  however,  surveyed  her  and  determined 
to  make  her  do.  Indeed,  there  was  no  choice ;  it 
was  that  or  nothing.  He  hoped  to  effect  something 
with  her  which  would  warrant  him  in  demanding 
a  better  ship ;  so,  with  a  sigh  of  regret  for  the  Indien, 
he  set  to  work  upon  her,  doing  his  best  to  make 
her  efficient.  By  his  orders  she  was  pierced  for 
twenty-eight  guns  on  her  main  deck  and  six  on 
the  poop  and  forecastle.  In  order  to  further  in- 
crease her  force,  Jones,  after  much  deliberation,  re- 
sorted to  the  hazardous  experiment  of  cutting  "six 
ports  in  the  gun  room,  on  the  deck  below  the  gun 


THE   BON    HOMME    RICHARD.  147 

deck,  close  to  the  water  line ;  so  close,  in  fact,  that, 
with  anything  like  a  sea  on,  to  open  the  ports  would 
be  to  invite  destruction  by  foundering.*  Only  un- 
der exceptionally  favorable  circumstances,  therefore, 
could  these  guns  be  used.  At  best  the  gun-room 
battery  could  only  be  fought  in  the  calmest  weather 
and  smoothest  water.  In  this  dangerous  place 
he  mounted  six  old  and  condemned  i8-pounders, 
which  were  all  that  he  could  obtain  from  the  French 
arsenals.  On  the  main  deck  fourteen  12-pounders 
and  fourteen  Q-pounders  were  mounted,  f  Two 
9-pounders  were  placed  aft  on  the  quarter-deck,  two 
in  each  gangway,  and  two  on  the  forecastle.  All  the 
guns  were  old  and  worn  out ;  many  of  them  had 
been  condemned  by  the  French  Government  as  un- 
fit for  use.  The  six  guns  on  the  lower  deck  were 
mounted  three  on  a  side,  but  a  sufficient  number  of 
ports  had  been  cut  to  admit  of  shifting  the  guns  and 
working  the  whole  battery  on  either  side.  New 
guns  had  been  ordered  cast  for  the  Richard  at  the 
French  gun  foundries ;  but  the  usual  delays  com- 
pelled Jones  to  take  what  he  could,  and  finally  sail 
with  these  old  makeshifts.  The  guns  intended  for 

*  The  ship  of  the  line  Thesee(74),  commanded  by  the  cele- 
b-ated  de  Kersaint,  was  lost  in  the  night  battle  between 
Hawke  and  Conflans  at  Quiberon  Bay,  because  in  the  midst 
of  a  terrific  gale,  with  a  very  heavy  sea  on,  the  Frenchman 
unfortunately  opened  his  lower  deck  ports  to  make  use  of 
his  heavy  battery  in  the  action. 

f  There  is  a  discrepancy  in  the  various  accounts  of  the 
armament  of  the  Richard,  some  authorities  asserting  that 
all  the  guns  on  the  main  deck  were  12-pounders  and  that 
the  small  guns  on  the  poop  and  forecastle  were  6-pounders. 
The  probabilities  are  as  I  have  stated. 


148  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

the  Bon  Homme  Richard  arrived  after  she  had 
gone. 

The  Alliance  was  a  frigate-built  ship  of  thirty- 
two  guns,  9-  and  6-pounders,  manned  by  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  men,  and  commanded  by  Pierre  Lan- 
dais.  Landais  was  an  ex-officer  of  the  French  navy, 
who  had  been  dismissed- for  insubordination  and  in- 
capacity. Ignorant  of  these  facts,  knowing  only 
that  he  had  been  a  navy  officer,  and  wishing  to 
please  their  royal  ally,  and  perhaps  pay  a  delicate 
compliment  also  to  Lafayette,  who  was  a  passenger 
upon  the  ship  on  her  first  cruise,  the  marine  commis- 
sioners had  appointed  him  to  the  command  of  this 
fine  and  handsome  little  frigate.  The  Alliance  was 
one  of  the  fastest  ships  of  her  day ;  indeed,  she  may 
be  regarded  as  the  precursor  of  that  long  line  of 
splendid  frigates  and  sloops  of  war  which  have  been 
the  pride  of  American  shipbuilders  and  the  admira- 
tion of  foreign  navies.  Properly  re-armed  and  re- 
fitted, under  the  command  of  stout  old  John  Barry 
she  did  splendid  service  on  several  occasions  later 
in  the  war.  Her  swiftness  and  mobility,  it  was  be- 
lieved, would  add  greatly  to  the  usefulness  of  Jones' 
squadron. 

The  Pallas  was  a  fairly  efficient  merchant  ship, 
frigate  built,  carrying  thirty  6-pounders,  com- 
manded by  Captain  de  Cottineau  de  Kloguene.  The 
Vengeance  was  a  twelve-gun  brig  of  little  force, 
and  the  Cerf  a  sixteen-gun  cutter,  under  the  com- 
mand of  Captains  Ricot  and  de  Varage  respectively. 

After  many  difficulties  and  disheartening  delays, 
chiefly  overcome  by  Jones'  invincible  determina- 
tion and  persistence,  the  squadron  was  at  last  made 


IN    THE    BAY   OF    BISCAY. 


149 


ready  for  use.  The  first  duty  assigned  to  the  dar- 
ing commodore  was  a  cruise  for  the  driving  of  the 
enemy's  ships  out  of  the  Bay  of  Biscay,  and  con- 
voying merchant  ships  bound  from  port  to  port 
along  the  coast.  It  was  not  a  particularly  congenial 
duty,  but  he  entered  upon  it  zealously  and  without 
complaint. 

The  squadron  sailed  on  the  I9th  of  June,  1779. 
During  the  night  of  the  2Oth  the  Alliance  ran  foul 
of  the  Richard,  and  as  a  result  of  the  collision  the 
mizzenmast  of  the  Alliance  was  carried  away,  while 
the  Richard  lost  her  head,  cutwater,  jib  boom,  etc. 
The  blame  for  the  accident  mainly  rested  on  Lan- 
dais,  who,  it  was  afterward  developed,  had  behaved 
disgracefully  on  this  occasion,  showing  such  a  lack 
of  presence  of  mind  and  seamanly  aptitude,  coupled 
with  such  timidity  and  shrinking  from  duty,  that, 
when  the  accident  occurred,  he  not  only  gave  no 
orders,  but  basely  ran  below  to  load  his  pistols,  leav- 
ing the  ship  to  be  extricated  from  her  critical  situa- 
tion by  the  junior  officers.  Perhaps  he  was  afraid 
that  the  infuriated  Jones  would  attack  him  for  the 
mishandling  of  his  ship.  Jones,  who  had  been  be- 
low when  the  accident  occurred,  immediately  as- 
sumed charge  of  the  Richard,  and  by  prompt  action 
averted  a  more  serious  disaster.  To  do  Landais  jus- 
tice, however,  the  officer  of  the  watch  on  the  Rich- 
ard also  must  have  been  culpable,  for  he  was  subse- 
quently court-martialed  and  broken  for  his  lack  of 
conduct  on  this  occasion. 

Refusing  to  return  to  port,  and  patching  up  the 
two  ships  as  well  as  possible  from  their  present  re- 
sources, Jones  performed  the  duties  assigned  to  him, 


150  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

driving  the  enemy's  ships  out  of  those  waters  and 
safely  delivering  his  convoy.  On  the  return  voy- 
age, Captain  de  Yarage,  of  the  Cerf,  had  a  spirited 
encounter  with  a  heavily  armed  privateer  of  greater 
force  than  his  own,  which  lasted  for  an  hour  and 
ten  minutes  and  resulted  in  the  privateer  striking 
her  flag.  Before  he  could  take  possession,  however, 
other  ships  of  the  enemy  appeared,  and  he  was 
forced  to  abandon  his  prize.  The  Richard  chased 
several  sail,  two  of  which  were  thought  to  be 
frigates,  and  the  officers  and  men  manifested  every 
disposition  to  get  into  action ;  but  the  ships  sighted 
were  all  able  to  run  away  from  the  cumbrous  and 
slow-sailing  American  ship. 

On  the  last  day  of  June  the  squadron  put  into 
L'Orient  again  to  repair  damages.  During  the 
cruise  it  is  interesting  to  note  that  Jones  dispatched 
thirty  pounds,  in  the  shape  of  a  draft,  through  a 
friend  in  Dublin,  to  Scotland  for  the  use  of  his 
family.  He  frequently  made  them  remittances  from 
his  scanty  supplies  of  money,  and,  in  fact,  he  never 
forgot  them,  however  busy  with  great  undertakings 
he  may  have  been. 

Instructions  were  received  at  L'Orient  from 
Franklin  intended  to  govern  the  future  movements 
of  the  squadron.  They  had,  of  course,  been  pre- 
pared after  consultation  with  De  Sartine.  Jones 
was  directed  to  cruise  off  the  west  coast  of  Ireland 
to  intercept  the  West  Indian  ships  and  then  to  pro- 
ceed to  the  northward,  passing  the  Orkneys,  and 
range  down  the  coast  of  Scotland  and  endeavor  to 
capture  the  Baltic  fleet — which,  by  the  way,  had 
been  one  of  his  ojiginal^  projects.  After  carrying 


.MUTINY    ON    THE    RICHARD.  151 

out  these  orders  he  was  instructed  to  proceed  to  the 
Texel  about  August  15th,  where  he  would  find 
further  directions  awaiting  him.  Prizes  were  to  be 
sent  to  Dunkirk  or  Ostend  in  France,  or  Bergen  in 
Norway,  consigned  to  such  agents  as  De  Chaumont 
should  designate. 

Jones  was  very  much  disappointed,  naturally, 
with  the  Richard,  and  in  acknowledging  the  receipt 
of  these  instructions  he  made  a  last  effort  to  get  the 
Inclien.  It  was  intimated  that  such  might  be  the 
result  of  his  cruise  when  he  arrived  at  the  Texel,  if 
it  were  successful,  but  that  no  change  could  be  made 
in  his  orders  at  present.  Franklin  refused  to  at- 
tempt to  have  them  modified  by  consulting  with  the 
ministry,  and,  in  a  way  gentle  but  sufficiently  de- 
cided, he  directed  Jones  to  finish  repairing  the  ships 
with  all  speed  and  proceed  to  carry  out  the  orders 
he  had  received.  The  commodore,  swallowing  his 
disappointment  and  dissatisfaction  with  a  rather  ill 
grace,  it  must  be  confessed,  hastened  to  get  his  ships 
in  shape  for  the  proposed  expedition. 

During  the  cruise  in  the  Bay  of  Biscay  a  muti- 
nous spirit  had  broken  out  among  the  English  sea- 
men, with  whom  in  part  Jones  had  been  forced  to 
man  his  ship  in  default  of  other  men,  which  had 
become  sufficiently  developed  to  result  in  an  organ- 
ized conspiracy  to  take  the  Richard.  The  plot  was 
discovered  and  the  ringleaders  were  put  in  irons. 
When  the  Richard  arrived  at  L'Orient,  these  men, 
two  quartermasters,  were  court-martialed ;  but,  in- 
stead of  being  sentenced  to  death,  as  they  deserved, 
they  were  severely  flogged  with  the  cat-o'-nine-tails. 
Jones,  who,  if  he  erred,  leaped  to  the  side  of  mercy, 


!J2  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

seems  to  have  been  greatly  relieved  at  this  termina- 
tion of  the  affair.  At  this  time  the  lieutenant  of  the 
Richard,  who  had  been  in  charge  of  the  watch  dur- 
ing the  collision,  was  also  court-martialed  and  dis- 
missed the  service. 

These  several  unfortunate  happenings  had  given 
De  Sartine  a  very  low  idea  of  the  efficiency  and 
value  of  the  Bon  Homme  Richard  and  the  squad- 
ron, which  galled  Jones  extremely.  Indeed,  1  im- 
agine De  Sartine  looked  upon  Jones  in  the  light  of 
a  nuisance  niore  than  anything  else.  The  repairs 
progressed  very  slowly,  and  it  was  not  until  August 
that  the  ships  were  ready  to  proceed.  Meanwhile 
an  event  of  the  greatest  importance  had  occurred 
in  the  arrival  of  a  cartel  at  Nantes  with  one  hun- 
dred and  nineteen  exchanged  American  prisoners. 
Many  of  them  entered  on  the  Richard,  and  Jones 
was  thus  enabled  to  weed  out  a  large  proportion  of 
the  mutinous  and  disorderly  element  in  his  crew. 
The  fine  qualities  of  some  of  these  new  recruits  en- 
abled him  to  replace  many  of  his  petty  officers — 
invaluable  adjuncts  to  an  efficient  crew — with  ex- 
perienced seamen  who  could  be  depended  upon,  not 
merely  as  sailors,  but  as  men  who,  fresh  from  the 
horrors  and  brutalities  of  English  prisons,  were 
more  than  ready  to  fight  against  the  red  flag  wher- 
ever it  was  planted.  They  leavened  the  whole  mass. 

The  re-enforcement  was  of  the  greatest  value ; 
but  Jones'  good  fortune  did  not  end  here,  for  before 
he  sailed  again  he  was  joined  by  a  young  American 
naval  officer  of  the  highest  capacity  and  courage, 
named  Richard  Dale,  who  had  been  captured  in  the 
Lexington  and  held  a  prisoner  in  England.  He  had 


RICHARD    DALE.  153 

effected  a  most  daring  and  romantic  escape  from  the 
Mill  Prison  by  the  assistance  of  an  unknown  woman, 
whose  name  and  the  circumstances  of  their  ac- 
quaintance remained  a  mystery ;  Dale  absolutely  re- 
fused to  divulge  them  to  the  day  of  his  death. 

Jones  found  in  him  a  congenial  spirit  and  an 
able  subordinate.  He  promptly  appointed  him  first 
lieutenant  of  the  Richard,  and  between  the  two  men 
there  speedily  developed  a  friendship  as  lasting  as  it 
was  unaffected  and  disinterested.  Next  to  Jones 
himself,  in  the  early  records,  stands  the  name  of  this 
young  man,  then  scarcely  twenty-three  years  of  age. 
Aside  from  the  great  commodore,  it  was  he  who 
contributed  more  to  the  subsequent  success  of  the 
Richard  than  any  other  man.  At  the  request  of  De 
Sartine,  Jones  also  received  on  the  Richard  a  bat- 
talion of  royal  marines,  who  wrere  all  French  of 
course,  and  who  had  been  augmented  until  they 
numbered  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven  officers  and 
men,  under  Lieutenant-Colonel  de  Chamillard  de 
Warville.  It  was  supposed  by  the  minister  that  they 
could  at  least  keep  order  on  the  ship!  The  time 
limited  to  the  expiration  of  the  cruise  was  extended 
to  the  end  of  the  month  of  September. 

The  total  complement  of  the  Richard,  therefore, 
according  to  Jones'  statement,  was  about  three 
hundred  and  eighty  officers,  men,  and  boys,  includ- 
ing the  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven  marines.  A 
roll  of  officers  and  men  is  given  by  Sherburne  in  his 
Life  of  Jones. 

On  this  list,  which  purports  to  contain  the  names 
of  those  who  were  on  board  on  the  date  of  the  bat- 
tle with  the  Serapis,  are  enumerated  the  names  of 


154  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

but  two  hundred  and  twenty-seven  officers  and 
men.  It  omits  the  name  of  de  Chamillard  and  an- 
other colonel  of  infantry,  de  Weibert,  who  were 
actually  on  board,  and  gives  no  names  of  the  French 
marines.  Adding  the  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
seven  to  the  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven,  we  get 
three  hundred  and  sixty-four,  which  is  as  near  as 
we  can  come  to  Jones'  figures.  There  may  have 
been  others  whose  names  were  added  later  on,  but 
at  any  rate  it  is  safe  to  take  Jones'  statement  as 
practically  correct. 

Assuming  that  the  known  factors  fairly  repre- 
sented the  whole  crew,  we  find  that  among  the  offi- 
cers twenty-four  were  Americans,  two  were  French- 
men, and  six  British,  including  Jones  and  two  sur- 
geon's mates.  Among  the  seamen  fifty-five  were 
American  born,  sixteen  Irish,  sixty-one  British, 
twenty-eight  Portuguese,  twenty  who  are  not  de- 
scribed, of  whom  seven  were  probably  Portuguese, 
and  fifteen  of  other  nationalities,  including,  accord- 
ing to  Cooper,  some  Malays — possibly  Filipinos 
learning  thus  early  to  fight  for  freedom  under,  not 
against,  the  Stars  and  Stripes  !  Thus,  scarcely  more 
than  one  fifth  of  the  complement  were  native  Ameri- 
cans. The  marines,  of  course,  were  efficiently  or- 
ganized and  commanded,  and  were  of  the  usual 
character  of  the  men  in  the  French  service.  The 
rest  of  the  crew,  with  the  exception  of  the  Ameri- 
cans, who  were  filling  the  posts  of  petty  officers, 
were  a  hard-bitten,  reckless  crowd  of  adventurers, 
mercenaries,  bravos,  and  what  not,  whom  only  a 
man  like  Jones  could  control  and  successfully  direct. 
Under  his  iron  hand  they  developed  into  as  ready 


A    HARD-BITTEN   CREW.  155 

a  crew  as  ever  fought  a  ship,  and  in  our  estimation 
of  his  subsequent  success  the  fact  must  not  be  lost 
sight  of  that  he  made  out  of  such  a  motley  assem- 
blage so  efficient  an  organization.  The  officers  were 
fairly  capable,  though  none  of  them  reached  the 
standard  of  Dale,  and  at  least  one  of  them  left  the 
cruise  with  a  serious  cloud  upon  his  reputation. 

Perhaps  two  thirds  of  the  crew  of  the  Alliance 
were  English  seamen  who  had  been  recruited  from 
the  men  of  the  line  of  battle  ship  Somerset,  which 
had  been  wrecked  in  America,  and  a  large  number 
of  her  crew  captured.  They  enlisted  on  the  Alli- 
ance in  the  hope  of  capturing  her  and  making  their 
escape,  thus  avoiding  a  sojourn  in  American  prisons. 
Qn  the  way  to  France,  owing  to  the  presence  of 
these  men  on  the  ship,  a  conspiracy  had  developed, 
the  successful  termination  of  which  was  only  pre- 
vented by  the  resolution  and  courage  of  Lafayette 
and  the  passengers  with  the  regular  officers  of  the 
ship.  There  were  but  a  small  number  of  Americans 
on  the  Alliance,  owing  to  the  fact  that  she  was  com- 
manded by  a  Frenchman,  under  whom  Americans 
generally  refused  to  sail.  The  officers,  with  few  ex- 
ceptions, were  poor  in  quality.  Her  crew  had  been 
somewhat  improved  before  the  squadron  sailed,  by 
the  enlistment  of  some  of  the  prisoners  from  the 
cartel,  but  it  was  still  far  from  being  an  efficient  body 
of  men,  and  under  such  a  captain  as  Landais  there 
was  no  hope  of  it  ever  becoming  so. 

The  officers  and  crew  of  the  Pallas,  Vengeance, 
and  Cerf  were  French  in  toto,  the  officers  all  hold- 
ing French  commissions.  The  squadron  was  en- 
tirely at  the  charges  of  the  French  Government,  al- 


156  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

though  each  of  the  officers  sailed  with  a  supple- 
mentary American  commission  issued  by  Franklin 
and  his  confreres,  and  all  the  vessels  were  under 
the  American  flag. 

De  Chaumont  had  been  indefatigable  in  fitting 
out  the  ships  as  best  he  could,  and  personally  he 
had  done  everything  in  his  power  to  further  the 
success  of  the  enterprise.  If  his  labors  had  ceased 
there,  the  results  would  have  been  better ;  but,  prob- 
ably under  the  direction  of  the  minister,  and  influ- 
enced by  the  natural  reluctance  of  the  French  offi- 
cers and  men  to  serve  under  the  command  of  an 
officer  of  another  country,  de  Chaumont  prepared 
a  concordat,  which  he  suppressed  until  just  before 
the  time  of  sailing,  when  it  was  exhibited  to  Jones 
and  the  other  captains  and  their  signatures  de- 
manded. By  the  terms  of  this  singular  document 
the  officers  and  men  and  the  several  vessels  of  the 
squadron,  instead  of  being  under  the  absolute 
charge  of  Jones  himself,  as  is  the  case  with  every 
properly  organized  expedition,  were  formed  into  a 
species  of  alliance  offensive  and  defensive ;  and 
while,  of  course,  the  headship  was  necessarily  under 
Jones  while  he  lived,  he  was  so  hampered  and  re- 
stricted by  the  various  articles  of  the  agreement  as  to 
feel  himself  scarcely  more  than  first  among  his 
equals.  He  was  left  with  full  responsibility  for  suc- 
cess, but  so  shorn  of  power  and  ability  to  compel 
obedience  to  his  orders  as  to  render  it  necessary  for 
him  to  resort  to  persuasion  to  effect  his  end.  Any 
ordinary  commander  would  have  withdrawn  at  the 
last  moment,  but  Jones  was  determined  upon  effect- 
ing something;  so,  with  great  reluctance  and  un- 


THE  UNFORTUNATE  CONCORDAT. 


157 


availing  protests,  he  signed  the  concordat,  and  the 
ill-assorted  squadron  proceeded  on  its  way.* 

Surely  never  before  was  such  an  expedition  for 
warlike  purposes  put  forth  upon  the  narrow  seas ! 
It  is  difficult  to  see  what  result  any  sane  man  could 
have  legitimately  expected  from  it.  That  it  ac- 
complished anything  was  due  to  Jones  himself — 
commodore  by  virtue  of  a  paper  agreement,  just  as 
binding  and  effective  as  any  of  the  several  signers 
wished  it  to  be !  The  world  had  long  known  him  as 
a  man  remarkable  for  audacity  in  conception,  bold- 
ness in  planning,  hardihood  in  carrying  out,  and 
downright  courage  in  the  supreme  moment.  As  a 
seaman  and  a  fighter  he  had  few  equals  and  no 
masters.  But  the  cruise  developed  that  he  pos- 
sessed other  qualities  of  leadership  which  are  some- 
times lost  sight  of  in  this  brilliant  galaxy,  qualities 
which  his  previous  experience  had  not  led  us  to 
expect  him  to  exhibit.  He  was  shown  to  be  con- 
siderate, tactful,  forbearing,  persuasive,  holding 
himself  under  strong  restraint.  Naturally  of  a  pas- 
sionate, impetuous,  uncontrollable  nature,  that  he 
exhibited  these  qualities  speaks  well  for  the  man. 
He  had  learned  to  control  his  feelings  in  the  bitter 
school  of  procrastination,  evasion,  and  disappoint- 
ment of  the  past  year. 

*  See  Appendix  No.  II. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

THE    CRUISE    OF   THE    SQUADRON. 

ALL  things  being  as  ready  as  it  was  possible  to 
make  them,  on  the  I4th  of  August,  1779,  amid  the 
booming  of  cannon  and  the  waving  of  flags,  the 
expedition  set  sail.  Very  pretty  it  must  have  looked, 
dropping  down  the  roads,  as  sail  after  sail  was  set 
on  the  broad  yardarms  extending  above  the  little 
commander  on  the  poop  deck  of  the  Indiaman, 
resolutely  putting  his  difficulties  and  trials  behind 
him,  and  glad  to  be  at  last  at  sea  and  headed  for 
the  enemy.  And  yet  he  might  well  have  borne  a 
heavy  heart !  Only  a  man  of  Jones'  caliber  could 
have  faced  the  possibilities  with  a  particle  of  equa- 
nimity. By  any  rule  of  chance  or  on  any  ground  of 
probability  the  expedition  was  doomed  to  failure, 
capture,  or  destruction.  But  the  personality  of 
Jones,  his  serene  and  soon-to-be-justified  confidence 
in  himself,  discounted  chance  and  overthrew  proba- 
bility. I  have  noticed  it  is  ever  the  man  with  the 
fewest  resources  and  poorest  backing  who  accom- 
plishes most  in  the  world's  battles.  The  man  who 
has  things  made  easy  for  him  usually  "  takes  it 
easy,"  and  accomplishes  the  easy  thing  or  nothing. 

The  squadron  was  accompanied  by  two  heavily 
armed  privateers,  the  Monsieur  and  the  Granvelle, 
158 


THE    FIRST    PRIZE. 


159 


raising  the  number  of  vessels  to  seven.  The  mas- 
ters of  the  privateers  did  not  sign  the  concordat,  but 
they  entered  into  voluntary  association  with  the 
others  and  agreed  to  abide  by  the  orders  of  Jones — 
an  agreement  they  broke  without  hesitation  in  the 
face  of  the  first  prize,  which  was  captured  on  the 
1 8th  of  August.  The  prize  was  a  full-rigged  ship, 
called  the  Verwagting,  mounting  fourteen  guns  and 
loaded  with  brandy.  The  vessel,  a  Dutch  ship,  had 
been  captured  by  the  English,  and  was  therefore  a 
lawful  prize  to  the  squadron.  The  captain  of 
the  Monsieur,  which  was  the  boarding  vessel, 
plundered  the  prize  of  several  valuable  articles 
for  his  own  benefit,  manned  her,  and  attempted  to 
dispatch  her  to  Ostend.  Jones,  however,  over- 
hauled her,  replac'ed  the  prize  crew  by  some  of 
his  own  men,  and  sent  her  in  under  his  own 
orders.  The  Monsieur  and  her  offended  captain 
thereupon  promptly  deserted  the  squadron  in  the 
night. 

On  the  2ist,  off  the  southwest  coast  of  Ireland, 
they  captured  a  brig,  the  Mayflower,  loaded  with 
butter,  which  was  also  manned  and  sent  in.  On  the 
23d  they  rounded  Cape  Clear,  the  extreme  south- 
western point  of  Ireland.  The  day  being  calm, 
Jones  manned  his  boats  and  sent  them  inshore  to 
capture  a  brigantine.  The  ship,  not  having  steerage 
way,  began  to  drift  in  toward  the  dangerous  shore 
after  the  departure  of  the  boats,  and  it  became  neces- 
sary to  haul  her  head  offshore,  for  which  purpose  the 
captain's  barge  was  sent  ahead  with  a  towline.  As 
the  shades  of  evening  descended,  the  crew  of  the 
barge,  who  were  apparently  English,  took  advan- 


l6o  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

tage  of  the  absence  of  the  other  boats  and  the 
opportunity  presented,  to  cut  the  towline  and  desert. 
As  they  made  for  the  shore,  Mr.  Cutting  Lunt,  third 
lieutenant,  with  four  marines,  jumped  into  a  small 
boat  remaining,  and  chased  the  fugitives  without 
orders ;  but,  pursuing  them  too  far  from  the  ship,  a 
fog  came  down  which  caused  him  to  lose  his  bear- 
ings, and  prevented  him  from  joining  the  Richard 
that  night. 

The  crew  of  a  commodore's  barge,  like  the  crew 
of  a  captain's  gig,  is  usually  made  up  of  picked  men, 
and  the  character  of  the  Richard's  crew  is  well  indi- 
cated by  this  desertion.  The  other  boats  luckily 
managed  to  rejoin  the  Richard,  after  succeed- 
ing in  cutting  out  the  brigantine.  The  ships  beat 
to  and  fro  off  the  coast  until  the  next  day,  when  the 
captains  assembled  on  the  Richard.  Landais  be- 
haved outrageously  on  this  occasion.  He  re- 
proached Jones  in  the  most  abusive  manner,  as  if 
the  desertion  of  the  barge  and  the  loss  of  the  two 
boats  was  due  to  negligence  on  his  part.  One  can 
imagine  with  what  grim  silence  the  irate  little 
American  listened  to  the  absurd  tirade,  and  in  what 
strong  control  he  held  himself  to  keep  from  arrest- 
ing Landais  where  he  stood.  It  gives  us  -a  vivid 
picture  of  the  situation  of  the  fleet  to  find  that 
Jones  was  actually  compelled  to  consult  with  his 
captains  and  obtain  the  consent  of  de  Varage 
before  he  could  order  the  Cerf  to  reconnoiter 
the  coast,  if  possible  to  find  the  two  boats  and  their 
crews. 

Thus,  as  Commodore  Mackenzie,  himself  a  naval 
officer,  grimly  remarks : 


THE    LOSS   OF   JHE    BOATS.  161 

"  Before  giving  orders  of  indispensable  neces- 
sity, as  a  superior  officer,  we  find  him  taking  the 
advice  of  one  captain  and  obtaining  the  consent  and 
approbation  of  another." 

But  we  may  be  sure  that  it  was  only  dire  neces- 
sity that  required  such  a  course  of  action.  Evi- 
dently the  situation  was  not  to  the  liking  of  the 
commodore,  but  it  was  one  that  he  could  not 
remedy. 

As  the  Cerf  approached  the  shore  to  reconnoiter, 
she  hoisted  the  English  colors  to  disguise  her  na- 
tionality, and  was  seen  by  Mr.  Lunt,  who  had  evi- 
dently overtaken  the  deserters.  Mistaking  her 
character,  he  pulled  in  toward  the  shore  to  escape 
the  fancied  danger,  and  was  easily  captured  by  the 
English  with  the  two  boats  and  their  crews.  By 
this  unfortunate  mishap  the  Richard  lost  two  of  her 
boats,  containing  an  officer  and  twenty-two  men. 
The  Cerf,  losing  sight  of  the  squadron  in  the  even- 
ing, turned  tail  and  went  back  to  France,  instead 
of  proceeding  to  the  first  of  the  various  rendezvous 
which  had  been  agreed  upon.  The  Granvelle,  hav- 
ing made  a  prize  on  her  own  account,  took  advan- 
tage of  her  entirely  independent  position  and  the 
fact*  that  she  was  far  away  from -the  Richard  to 
disregard  signals  and  make  off  with  her  capture. 
This  reduced  the  squadron  to  the  Richard,  Alliance, 
Pallas,  and  Vengeance.  It  was  Jones'  desire  to 
cruise  to  and  fro  off  the  harbor  of  Limerick  to  inter- 
cept the  West  Indian  ships,  which,  to  the  number  of 
eight  or  ten,  were  daily  expected.  These  vessels, 
richly  laden,  were  of  great  value,  and  their  capture 
12 


162  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

could  have  easily  been  effected,  but  Landais  pro- 
tested vehemently  against  remaining  in  any  one 
spot.  Among  other  things,  the  Frenchman  was  un- 
doubtedly a  coward,  and,  of  course,  by  remaining 
steadily  in  one  place  opportunities  for  being  over- 
hauled were  greatly  increased.  Jones  finally  suc- 
cumbed to  Landais'  entreaties  and  protestations, 
which  were  backed  up  by  those  of  Captains  Cotti- 
neau  and  Ricot. 

Of  course,  it  is  impossible  to  say  how  far  his 
authority  would  have  lasted  had  he  peremptorily 
refused  to  accede  to  their  demands,  as  paper  con- 
cordats are  not  very  binding  ties  ;  but  he  might  per- 
haps have  made  a  more  determined  effort  to  induce 
them  to  carry  out  his  plans  and  remain  with  him. 
To  leave  the  position  he  had  chosen,  which  pre- 
sented such  opportunities,  was  undoubtedly  an 
error  in  judgment,  and  Jones  tacitly  admits  it  in  the 
following  words,  written  long  afterward : 

"  Nothing  prevented  me  from  pursuing  my  de- 
sign but  the  reproach  that  would  have  been  cast 
upon  my  character  as  a  man  of  prudence.*  It 
would  have  been  said :  '  Was  he  not  forewarned  by 
Captain  Cottineau  and  others  ?  ' ' 

The  excuse  is  as  bad  as,  if  not  worse  than*  the 
decision.  But  this  is  almost  the  only  evidence  of 
weakness  and  irresolution  which  appears  in  Jones' 
conduct  in  all  the  emergencies  in  which  he  was 
thrown.  It  is  impossible  to  justify  this  action,  but, 
in  view  of  the  circumstances,  which  we  can  only 

*  In  case  of  disaster,  that  is. 


THE    HIGHEST   COURAGE.  163 

imagine  and  hardly  adequately  comprehend,  we 
need  not  censure  him  too  greatly  for  his  indecision. 
In  fact,  the  decision  itself  was  a  mistake  which  the 
ablest  of  men  might  naturally  make.  The  weak- 
ness lay  in  the  excuse  which  he  himself  offers,  and 
which  it  pains  one  to  read.  In  this  connection  the 
noble  comment  of  Captain  Mahan  is  interesting: 

"  The  subordination  of  public  enterprises  to  con- 
siderations of  personal  consequences,  even  to  repu- 
tation, is  a  declension  from  the  noblest  in  a  pub- 
lic man.  Not  life  only,  but  personal  credit,  is 
to  be  fairly  risked  for  the  attainment  of  public 
ends." 

It  can  not  be  said  that  Jones  was  altogether  dis- 
interested in  his  actions.  The  mere  common,  vul- 
gar, mercenary  motives  were  absent  from  his  under- 
takings, but  it  must  be  admitted  that  he  never  lost 
sight  of  the  results,  not  only  to  his  country  and  its 
success,  but  to  his  own  reputation  as  well.  If  Jones 
had  proceeded  in  his  intention,  and  Landais  had 
finally  deserted  him,  the  results  would  have  been 
very  much  better  for  the  cruise — always  provided 
that  the  Pallas  at  least  remained  with  the  Richard. 
We  shall  see  later  on  that  all  the  ships  deserted  him 
on  one  occasion. 

On  the  26th  of  August  a  heavy  gale  blew  up 
from  the  southwest,  and  Jones  scudded  before  it  to 
the  northward  along  the  Irish  coast.  Landais  de- 
liberately changed  the  course  of  the  Alliance  in  the 
darkness,  and,  the  tiller  of  the  Pallas  having  been 
carried  away  during  the  night,  Jones  found  himself 
alone  with  the  Vengeance  the  next  morning.  The 


164  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

gale  having  abated,  these  two  remaining  vessels 
continued  their  course  in  a  leisurely  manner  along 
the  Irish  coast.  On  the  3ist  the  Alliance  hove  in 
sight,  followed  by  a  valuable  West  Indiaman  called 
the  Betsy,  mounting  twenty-two  guns,  which  she 
had  captured — a  sample  of  what  might  have  resulted 
if  the  squadron  had  stayed  off  Limerick. 

The  Pallas  having  also  joined  company  again, 
on  the  ist  of  September  the  Richard  brought  to  the 
Union,  a  government  armed  ship  of  twenty-two 
guns,  bound  for  Halifax  with  valuable  naval  stores. 
Before  boats  were  called  away  and  the  prize  taken 
possession  of,  with  unparalleled  insolence  Landais 
sent  a  messenger  to  Jones  asking  whether  the  Alli- 
ance should  man  the  prize,  in  which  case  he  should 
allow  no  man  from  the  Richard  to  board  her !  With 
incredible  complaisance  the  long-suffering  Jones 
allowed  Landais  to  man  this  capture  also,  while  he 
himself  received  the  prisoners  on  the  Richard. 
These  two  vessels,  in  violation  of  Jones'  explicit 
orders,  were  sent  in  to  Bergen,  Norway,  where  they 
were  promptly  released  by  the  Danish  Government 
and  returned  to  England  on  the  demand  of  the  Brit- 
ish minister.  Their  value  was  estimated  at  forty 
thousand  pounds  sterling.  The  unwarranted  return 
of  the  vessels  was  the  foundation  of  a  claim  for  in- 
demnity against  Denmark,  of  which  we  shall  hear 
later.  On  the  day  of  the  capture  Landais  disre- 
garded another  specific  signal  from  the  flagship  to 
chase ;  instead  of  doing  which,  he  wore  ship  and 
headed  directly  opposite  the  direction  in  which  he 
should  have  gone.  The  next  morning  he  again  dis- 
regarded a  signal  to  come  within  hail  of  the  Richard, 


LAN  DAIS    DESERTS   THE   SQUADRON.         165 

on  which  occasion  he  did  not  even  set  an  answering 
pennant. 

On  September  3d  and  4th  the  squadron  captured 
a  brig  and  two  sloops  off  the  Shetland  Islands.  On 
the  evening  of  this  day  Jones  summoned  the  cap- 
tains to  the  flagship.  Lanclais  refused  to  go,  and 
when  de  Cottineau  tried  to  persuade  him  to  do  so 
he  became  violently  abusive,,  and  declared  that  the 
matters  at  issue  between  the  commodore  and  him- 
self were  so  grave  that  they  could  only  be  settled  by 
a  personal  meeting  on  shore,  at  which  one  or  the 
other  should  forfeit  his  life.  Fortunately  for  the 
peace  of  mind  of  the  commodore,  whose  patience 
had  reached  the  breaking  point,  the  Alliance  imme- 
diately after  parted  company,  and  did  not  rejoin  the 
command  until  the  23d  of  September.  If  Landais 
had  stayed  away  altogether,  or  succeeded  in  getting 
himself  lost  or  captured,  it  would  have  been  a  great 
advantage  to  the  country. 

Another  gale  blew  up  on  the  5th,  and  heavy 
weather  continued  for  several  days.  The  little 
squadron  of  three  vessels  labored  along  through  the 
heavy  seas  to  the  northward,  passed  the  dangerous 
Orkneys,  doubled  the  wild  Hebrides,  rounded  the 
northern  extremity  of  Scotland,  and  on  the  evening 
of  the  1 3th  approached  the  east  coast  near  the 
Cheviot  Hills.  On  the  I4th  they  arrived  off  the 
Firth  of  Forth,  where  they  were  lucky  enough  to 
capture  one  ship  and  one  brigantine  loaded  with 
coal.  From  them  they  learned  that  the  naval  force 
in  the  harbor  of  Leith  was  inconsiderable,  consist- 
ing of  one  twenty-gun  sloop  of  war  and  three  or 
four  cutters.  Jones  immediately  conceived  the  idea 


1 66 


COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 


of  destroying  this  force,  holding  the  town  under  his 
batteries,  landing  a  force  of  marines,  and  exacting  a 
heavy  ransom  under  threat  of  destruction. 


Map  showing  the  cruises  of  the  Ranger  and  the  Bon  Homme 
Richard,  and  the  dash  of  the  Alliance  from  the  Texel. 


THE   ATTEMPT   ON    LEITH.  \fy 

Although  weakened  in  force  by  the  desertion  of 
the  ships,  by  the  number  of  prizes  he  had  manned, 
and  the  large  number  of  prisoners  on  board  the 
Richard,  he  still  hoped,  as  he  says,  to  teach  English 
cruisers  the  value  of  humanity  on  the  other  side 
of  the  water,  and  by  this  bold  attack  to  demonstrate 
the  vulnerability  of  their  own  coasts.  He  also 
counted  upon  this  diversion  in  the  north  to  call  at- 
tention from  the  expected  grand  invasion  in  the 
south  of  England  by  the  French  and  Spanish  fleets. 
The  wind  was  favorable  for  his  design,  but  unfor- 
tunately the  Pallas  and  the  Vengeance,  which  had 
lagged  as  usual,  were  some  distance  in  the  offing. 
Jones  therefore  ran  back  to  meet  them  in  order  to 
advise  them  of  his  plan  and  concert  measures  for 
the  attack.  He  found  that  the  French  had  but  little 
stomach  for  the  enterprise;  they  positively  refused 
to  join  him  in  the  undertaking,  a  decision  which,  by 
the  terms  of  the  concordat,  they  had  a  right  to  make. 
After  a  night  spent  in  fruitless  argument  between  the 
three  captains — think  of  it,  arguments  in  the  place 
of  orders ! — Jones  appealed  to  their  cupidity,  proba- 
bly the  last  thing  that  would  have  moved  him.  By 
painting  the  possibilities  of  plunder  he  wrung  a  re- 
luctant consent  from  these  two  gentlemen,  and  pro- 
ceeded rapidly  to  develop  the  plan. 

As  usual,  not  being  able  to  embrace  the  oppor- 
tunity when  it  was  presented,  a  change  in  the  wind 
rendered  it  impossible  for  the  present.  The  design 
and  opportunity  were  too  good,  however,  to  be  lost, 
and  the  squadron  beat  to  and  fro  off  the  harbor, 
waiting  for  a  shift  of  wind  to  make  practicable  the 
effort.  On  the  I5th  they  captured  another  collier, 


1 68  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

a  schooner,  the  master  of  which,  named  Andrew 
Robertson,  was  bribed  by  the  promised  return  of 
his  vessel  to  pilot  them  into  the  harbor  of  Leith. 
Robertson,  a  dastardly  traitor,  promised  to  do  so, 
and  saved  his  collier  thereby.  On  the  morning  of 
the  i6th  an  amusing  little  incident  occurred  off  the 
coast  of  Fife.  The  ships  were,  of  course,  sailing 
under  English  colors,  and  one  of  the  seaboard  gen- 
try, taking  them  for  English  ships  in  pursuit  of  Paul 
Jones,  who  was  believed  to  be  on  the  coast,  sent  a 
shore  boat  off  to  the  Richard  asking  the  gift  of  some 
powder  and  shot  with  which  to  defend  himself  in 
case  he  received  a  visit  from  the  dreaded  pirate. 
Jones,  who  was  much  amused  by  the  situation, 
made  a  courteous  reply  to  the  petition,  and  sent  a 
barrel  of  powder,  expressing  his  regret  that  he  had 
no  suitable  shot.  He  detained  one  of  the  boatmen, 
however,  as  a  pilot  for  one  of  the  other  ships.  Dur- 
ing the  interim  the  following  proclamation  was  pre- 
pared for  issuance  when  the  town  had  been  cap- 
tured. The  document  is  somewhat  diffuse  in  its 
wording,  but  the  purport  of  it  is  unmistakable : 

"  The  Honorable  J.  Paul  Jones,  Commander-in- 
chief  of  the  American  Squadron,  now  in  Europe,  to 
the  Worshipful  Provost  of  Leith,  or,  in  his  absence, 
to  the  Chief  Magistrate,  who  is  now  actually  present, 
and  in  authority  there. 

"  SIR  :  The  British  marine  force  that  has  been 
stationed  here  for  the  protection  of  your  city  and 
commerce,  being  no\v  taken  by  the  American  arms 
under  my  command,  I  have  the  honour  td  send  you 
this  summons  by  my  officer,  Lieutenant-Colonel  de 


THE    ATTEMPT   ON    LEITH.  169 

Chamillard,  who  commands  the  vanguard  of  my 
troops.  I  do  not  wish  to  distress  the  poor  inhabit- 
ants ;  my  intention  is  only  to  demand  your  contribu- 
tion toward  the  reimbursement  which  Britain  owes 
to  the  much-injured  citizens  of  the  United  States ; 
for  savages  would  blush  at  the  unmanly  violation 
and  rapacity  that  have  marked  the  tracks  of  British 
tyranny  in  America,  from  which  neither  virgin  in- 
nocence nor  helpless  age  has  been  a  plea  of  protec- 
tion or  pity. 

"  Leith  and  its  port  now  lie  at  our  mercy ;  and, 
did  not  our  humanity  stay  the  hand  of  just  retalia- 
tion, I  should,  without  advertisement,  lay  it  in  ashes. 
Before  I  proceed  to  that  stern  duty  as  an  officer,  my 
duty  as  a  man  induces  me  to  propose  to  you,  by 
means  of  a  reasonable  ransom,  to  prevent  such  a 
scene  of  horror  and  distress.  .For  this  reason  I 
have  authorized  Lieutenant-Colonel  de  Chamillard 
to  conclude  and  agree  with  you  on  the  terms  of  ran- 
som, allowing  you  exactly  half  an  hour's  reflection 
before  you  finally  accept- or  reject  the  terms  which 
he  shall  propose.  If  you  accept  the  terms  offered 
within  the  time  limited,  you  may  rest  assured  that 
no  further  debarkation  of  troops  will  be  made,  but 
the  re-embarkation  of  the  vanguard  will  immedi- 
ately follow,  and  the  property  of  the  citizens  shall  re- 
main unmolested." 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  i6th,  the  squadron  was 
sighted  from  Edinburgh  Castle,  slowly  running  in 
toward  the  Firth.  The  country  had  now  been  fully 
alarmed.  It  is  related  that  the  audacity  and  bold- 
ness of  this  cruise  and  his  previous  successes  had 


170  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

caused  Jones  to  be  regarded  with  a  terror  far  be- 
yond that  which  his  force  justified,  and  which  well- 
nigh  paralyzed  resistance.  Arms  were  hastily  dis- 
tributed, however,  to  the  various  guilds,  and  bat- 
teries were  improvised  at  Leith.  On  the  I7th,  the 
Richard,  putting  about,  ran  down  to  within  a  mile 
of  the  town  of  Kirkaldy.  As  it  appeared  to  the  in- 
habitants that  she  was  about  to  descend  upon  their 
coast,  they  were  rilled  with  consternation.  There  is 
a  story  told  that  the  minister  of  the  place,  a  quaint 
oddity  named  Shirra,  who  was  remarkable  for  his 
eccentricities,  joined  his  people  congregated  on  the 
beach,  surveying  the  approaching  ship  in  terrified 
apprehension,  and  there  made  the  following  prayer : 

"  Now,  deer  Lord,  dinna  ye  think  it  a  shame  for 
ye  to  send  this  vile  piret  to  rob  our  folk  o'  Kirkaldy? 
for  ye  ken  they're  puir  enow  already,  and  hae  nae- 
thing  to  spaire.  The  wa  the  ween  blaws,  he'll  be  here 
in  a  jiffie,  and  wha  kens  what  he  may  do?  He's  nae 
too  guid  for  onything.  Meickle's  the  mischief  he 
has  dune  already.  He'll  burn  thir  hooses,  tak  their 
very  claes  and  tirl  them  to  the  sark ;  and  wae's  me ! 
wha  kens  but  the  bluidy  villain  might  take  their 
lives!  The  puir  weemen  are  maist  frightened  out 
o'  their  wits,  and  the  bairns  skirling  after  them.  I 
canna  thol't  it !  I  canna  thol't  it !  I  hae  been  lang 
a  faithfu'  servant  to  ye,  Laird ;  but  gin  ye  dinna  turn 
the  ween  about,  and  blaw  the  scoundrel  out  of  our 
gate,  I'll  na  staur  a  fit,  but  will  just  sit  here  till  the 
tide  comes.  Sae  tak  yere  will  o't." 

This  extraordinary  petition  has  probably  lost 
nothing  by  being  handed  down.  At  any  rate,  just 


THE   KIRKALDY   PRAYER.  17! 

as  that  moment,  a  squall  which  had  been  brewing 
broke  violently  over  the  ship,  and  Jones  was  com- 
pelled to  bear  up  and  run  before  it.  The  honest 
people  of  Kirkaldy  always  attributed  their  relief  to 
the  direct  interposition  of  Providence  as  the  result 
of  the  prayer  of  their  minister.  He  accepted  the 
honors  for  his  Lord  and  himself  by  remarking, 
whenever  the  subject  was  mentioned  to  him,  that 
he  had  prayed  but  the  Lord  had  sent  the  wind ! 

It  is  an  interesting  tale,  but  its  effect  is  some- 
what marred  when  we  consider  that  Jones  had  no 
intention  of  ever  landing  at  Kirkaldy  or  of  doing  the 
town  any  harm.  He  was  after  bigger  game,  and  in 
his  official  account  he  states  that  he  finally  succeeded 
in  getting  nearly  within  gunshot  distance  of  Leith, 
and  had  made  every  preparation  to  land  there, 
when  a  gale  which  had  been  threatening  blew  so 
strongly  offshore  that,  after  making  a  desperate  at- 
tempt to  reach  an  anchorage  and  wait  until  it  blew 
itself  out,  he  was  obliged  to  run  before  it  and  get 
to  sea.  When  the  gale  abated  in  the  evening  he 
was  far  from  the  port,  which  had  now  become  thor- 
oughly alarmed.  Heavy  batteries  were  thrown  up 
and  troops  concentrated  for  its  protection,  so  that  he 
concluded  to  abandon  the  attempt.  His  conception 
had  been  bold  and  brilliant,  and  his  success  would 
have  been  commensurate  if,  when  the  opportunity 
had  presented  itself,  he  had  been  seconded  by  men 
on  the  other  ships  with  but  a  tithe  of  his  own  reso- 
lution. 

The  squadron  continued  its  cruise  to  the  south- 
ward and  captured  several  coasting  brigs,  schooners, 
and  sloops,  mostly  laden  with  coal  and  lumber.  Baf- 


COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

fled  in  the  Forth,  Jones  next  determined  'upon  a 
similar  project  in  the  Tyne  or  the  Humber,  and  on 
the  iQth  of  the  month  endeavored  to  enlist  the  sup- 
port of  his  captains  for  a -descent  on  Xewcastle- 
upon-Tyne,  as  it  was  one  of  his  favorite  ideas  to  cut 
off  the  London  coal  supply  by  destroying  the  ship- 
ping there ;  but  Cottineau,  of  the  Pallas,  refused  tc 
consent.  The  ships  had  been  on  the  coast  now  foi 
nearly  a  week,  and  there  was  no  telling  when  a  pur- 
suing English  squadron  would  make  its  appearance 
Cottineau  told  de  Chamillard  that  unless  Jones  left 
the  coast  the  next  day  the  Richard  would  be  aban- 
doned by  the  two  remaining  ships.  Jones,  there- 
fore, swallowing  his  disappointment  as  best  be 
might,  made  sail  for  the  Humber  and  the  important 
shipping  town  of  Hull. 

It  was  growing  late  in  September,  and  the  time 
set  for  the  return  to  the  Texel  was  approaching. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  however,  though  Jones  remained 
on  the  coast  cruising  up  and  down  and  capturing 
everything  he  came  in  sight  of,  in  spite  of  his  anx- 
iety Cottineau  did  not  actually  desert  his  commo- 
dore. Cottineau  was  the  best  of  the  French  officers. 
Without  the  contagion  of  the  others  he  might  have 
shown  himself  a  faithful  subordinate  at  all  times. 
Having  learned  the  English  private  signals  from  a 
captured  vessel,  Jones,  leaving  the  Pallas,  boldly 
sailed  into  the  mouth  of  the  Humber,  just  as  a  heavy 
convoy  under  the  protection  of  a  frigate  and  a  small 
sloop  of  war  was  getting  under  way  to  come  out  of 
it.  Though  he  set  the  English  flag  and  the  private 
signals  in  the  hope  of  decoying  the  whole  force  out 
to  sea  and  under  his  guns,  to  his  great  disappoint- 


OFF   FLAMBOROUGH    HEAD.  173 

ment  the  ships,  including  the  war  vessels,  put  back 
into  the  harbor.  The  Richard  thereupon  turned  to 
the  northward  and  slowly  sailed  along  the  coast,  fol- 
lowed by  the  Vengeance. 

Early  in  the  morning  of  September  23d,  while  it 
was  yet  dark,  the  Richard  chased  two  ships,  which 
the  daylight  revealed  to  be  the  Pallas  and  the  long- 
missing  Alliance,  which  at  last  rejoined.  The  wind 
was  blowing  fresh  from  the  southwest,  and  the  two 
ships  under  easy  canvas  slowly  rolled  along  to- 
ward Flamborough  Head.  Late  in  the  morning 
the  Richard  discovered  a  large  brigantine  inshore 
and  to  windward.  Jones  immediately  gave  chase 
to  her,  when  the  brigantine  changed  her  course 
and  headed  for  Bridlington  Bay,  where  she  came  to 
anchor. 

Bridlington  Bay  lies  just  south  of  Flamborough 
Head,  which  is  a  bold  promontory  bearing  a  light- 
house and  jutting  far  out  into  the  North  Sea.  Ves- 
sels from  the  north  bound  for  Hull  or  London  gen- 
erally pass  close  to  the  shore- at  that  point,,  in  order 
to  make  as  little  of  a  detour  as  possible.  For  this 
reason  Jones  had  selected  it  as  a  particularly  good 
cruising  ground.  Sheltered  from  observation  from 
one  side  or  the  other,  he  waited  for  opportunities, 
naturally  abundant,  to  pounce  upon  unsuspecting 
merchant  ships.  The  Baltic  fleet  had  not  yet  ap- 
peared off  the  coast,  though  it  was  about  due.  Un- 
less warned  of  his  presence,  it  would  inevitably  pass 
the  bold  headland  and  afford  brilliant  opportu- 
nity for  attack.  If  his  unruly  consorts  would  only 
remain  with  him  a  little  longer  something  might 
yet  be  effected.  To  go  back  now  would  be  to  con- 


COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

fess  to  a  partial  failure,  and  Jones  was  determined 
to  continue  the  cruise  even  alone,  until  he  had  dem- 
onstrated his  fitness  for  higher  things.  Fate  had  his 
opportunity  ready  for  him,  and  he  made  good  use 
of  it. 


CHAPTER  X. 

THE  BATTLE  WITH  THE  SERAPIS. 

ABOUT  noon  on  the  23d  of  September,  1779,  the 
lookouts  on  the  Richard  became  aware  of  the  sails 
of  a  large  ship  which  suddenly  shot  into  view  around 
the  headland.  Before  any  action  could  be  taken  the 
first  vessel  was  followed  by  a  second,  a  third,  and 
others  to  the  number  of  six,  all  close  hauled  on  the 
starboard  tack,  evidently  intent  upon  weathering  the 
point.  The  English  flags  fluttering  from  their  gaff 
ends  proclaimed  a  nationality,  of  which,  indeed, 
there  could  be  no  doubt.  The  course  of  the  Richard 
was  instantly  changed.  Dispatching  a  boat  under 
the  command  of  Lieutenant  Henry  Lunt  to  capture 
the  brigantine,  Jones,  in  high  anticipation,  headed 
the  Richard  for  the  strangers,  at  the  same  time  sig- 
naling the  Alliance,  the  Pallas,  and  the  Vengeance 
to  form  line  ahead  on  his  ship — that  is,  get  into  the 
wake  of  the  Richard  and  follow  in  single  file.  The 
Alliance  seems  to  have  been  ahead  and  to  windward 
of  the  Richard,  the  Pallas  to  windward  and  abreast, 
and  the  Vengeance  in  the  rear  of  the  flagship. 

It  had  not  yet  been  developed  whether  the  six 
ships,  which,  even  as  they  gazed  upon  them,  were 
followed  by  others  until  forty  sail  were  counted,  were 
vessels  of  war  or  a  merchant  fleet  under  convoy ;  but 

i75 


176  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

with  characteristic  audacity  Jones  determined  to  ap- 
proach them  sufficiently  near  to  settle  the  question. 
He  had  expressed  his  intention  of  going  in  harm's 
way,  and  for  that  purpose  had  asked  a  swift  ship. 
He  could  hardly  have  had  a  slower,  more  un- 
wieldy, unmanageable  vessel  under  him  than  the 
Richard,  but  the  fact  had  not  altered  his  intention  in 
the  slightest  degree,  so  the  course  of  the  Richard 
was  laid  for  the  ships  sighted. 

Captain  Landais,  however,  was  not  actuated  by 
the  same  motives  as  his  commander.  He  paid  no 
attention,  as  usual,  to  the  signal,  but  instead  ran  off 
to  the  Pallas,  to  whose  commander  he  communi- 
cated in  a  measure  some  of  his  own  indecision.  In 
the  hearing  of  the  crews  of  both  vessels  Landais 
called  out  to  his  fellow  captain  that  if  the  fleet  in 
view  were  convoyed  by  a  vessel  of  more  than  fifty 
guns  they  would  have  nothing  to  do  but  run  away, 
well  knowing  that  in  such  a  case  the  Pallas,  being 
the  slowest  sailer  of  the  lot — slower  even  than  the 
Richard — would  inevitably  be  taken.  Therefore, 
with  his  two  other  large  vessels  beating  to  and  fro 
in  a  state  of  frightened  uncertainty,  Jones  with  the 
Richard  bore  down  alone  upon  the  enemy.  The 
Vengeance  remained  far  enough  in  the  rear  of  the 
Richard  to  be  safe  out  of  harm's  way,  and  may  be 
dismissed  from  our  further  consideration,  as  she 
took  no  part  whatever  in  the  subsequent  events. 

Closer  scrutiny  had  satisfied  the  American  that 
the  vessels  in  sight  were  the  longed-for  Baltic  mer- 
chant fleet  which  was  convoyed  by  two  vessels  of 
war,  one  of  which  appeared  to  be  a  small  ship  of  the 
line  or  a  heavy  frigate.  In  spite,  therefore,  of  the  sus- 


THE   BALTIC   FLEET.  177 

picious  maneuvers  of  his  consorts,  Jones  flung  out  a 
signal  for  a  general  chase,  crossed  his  light  yards 
and  swept  toward  the  enemy.  Meanwhile  all  was 
consternation  in  the  English  fleet  off  the  headland. 
A  shore  boat  which  had  been  noticed  pulling  hard 
toward  the  English  convoying  frigate  now  dashed 
alongside,  and  a  man  ascended  to  her  deck.  Imme- 
diately thereafter  signals  were  broken  out  at  the 
masthead  of  the  frigate,  attention  being  called  to 
them  by  a  gun  fired  to  windward.  All  the  ships  but 
one  responded  by  tacking  or  wearing  in  different  di- 
rections in  great  apparent  confusion,  but  all  finally 
headed  for  the  harbor  of  Scarborough,  where,  under 
the  guns  of  the  castle,  they  hoped  to  find  a  secure 
refuge.  As  they  put  about  they  let  fly  their  top- 
gallant sheets  and  fired  guns  to  spread  the  alarm. 

Meanwhile  the  English  ship,  which  proved  to  be 
the  frigate  Serapis,  also  tacked  and  headed  west- 
ward, taking  a  position  between  her  convoy  and 
the  approaching  ships.  Some  distance  to  leeward 
of  the  frigate,  and  farther  out  to  sea,  to  the  eastward, 
a  smaller  war  vessel,  in  obedience  to  orders,  alsx> 
assumed  a  similar  position,  and  both  waited  for  the 
advancing  foe.  Early  that  morning  Richard  Pear- 
son, the  captain  of  the  Serapis,  had  been  informed 
that  Paul  Jones  was  off  the  coast,  and  he  had  been 
instructed  to  look  out  for  him.  The  information 
had  been  at  once  communicated  to  the  convoy,  to 
which  cautionary  orders  had  been  given,  which  had 
been  in  the  main  disregarded,  as  \vas  the  invariable 
custom  with  convoys.  The  shore  boat  which  the 
men  on  the  Richard  had  just  observed  speaking  the 
Serapis  contained  the  bailiff  of  Scarborough  Castle, 
13 


!78  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

who  confirmed  the  previous  rumors  and  undoubt- 
edly pointed  out  the  approaching  ships  as  Jones' 
squadron. 

Pearson,  as  we  have  seen,  had  signaled  his  con- 
voy, and  the  latter,  now  apprised  of  their  danger  be- 
yond all  reasonable  doubt  by  the  sight  of  the  ap- 
proaching ships,  had  at  last  obeyed  his  orders. 
Then  he  had  cleverly  placed  his  two  ships  between 
the  oncoming  American  squadron  to  cover  the  re- 
treat of  his  charges  and  to  prevent  the  enemy  from 
swooping  down  upon  them.  His  position  was  not 
only  proper  and  seamanlike,  but  it  was  in  effect  a 
bold  challenge  to  his  approaching  antagonist — a 
challenge  he  had  no  wish  to  disregard,  which  he 
eagerly  welcomed,  in  fact.  In  obedience  to  Jones' 
signal  for  a  general  chase,  the  Richard  and  the  Pallas 
were  headed  for  their  two  enemies.  As  they  drew 
nearer  the  Pallas  changed  her  course  in  accordance 
with  Jones'  directions,  and  headed  for  the  smaller 
English  ship,  the  Countess  of  Scarborough,  a  twen- 
ty-four gun,  6-pounder  sloop  of  war,  by  no  means 
an  equal  match  for  the  Pallas.  The  Vengeance  fol- 
lowed at  a  safe  distance  in  the  rear  of  the  commo- 
dore, while  Landais  disregarded  all  signals  and  pur- 
sued an  erratic  course  of  his  own  devising.  Some- 
times it  appeared  that  he  was  about  to  follow  the 
Richard,  sometimes  the  Pallas,  sometimes  the  flying 
merchantmen  attracted  his  attention.  It  was  evident 
that  the  one  thing  he  would  not  do  would  be  to 
fight. 

In  utter  disgust,  Jones  withdrew'  his  attention 
from  him  and  concentrated  his  mind  upon  the  task 
before  him.  He  was  about  to  engage  with  his  worn- 


A   COMPARISON   OF   FORCE. 


179 


out  old  hulk,  filled  with  condemned  guns,  a  splen- 
did English  frigate  of  the  first  class.  A  com- 
parison of  force  is  interesting.  Counting  the  main 
battery  of  the  Richard  as  composed  of  twelves  and 
the  spar-deck  guns  as  nines,  and  including  the  six 
i8-pounders  in  the  gun  room  as  being  all  fought 
on  one  side,  we  get  a  total  Of  forty  guns  throwing 
three  hundred  and  three  pounds  of  shot  to  the 
broadside ;  this  is  the  extreme  estimate.  Counting 
one  half  of  the  main  battery  as  Q-pounders,  we  get 
two  hundred  and  eighty-two  pounds  to  the  broad- 
side, and,  considering  the  i8-pounders  as  being 
fought  only  three  on  a  side,  we  reduce  the  weight  of 
the  broadside  to  two  hundred  and  twenty-eight 
pounds.  As  it  happened,  as  we  shall  see,  the 
i8-pounders  were  abandoned  after  the  first  fire,  so 
that  the  effective  weight  of  broadside  during  the 
action  amounted  to  either  one  hundred  and  ninety- 
five  or  one  hundred  and  seventy-four  pounds,  de- 
pending on  the  composition  of  the  main  battery. 
Even  the  maximum  amount  is  small  enough  by 
comparison. 

The  crew  of  the  Richard  had  been  reduced  to 
about  three  hundred  officers  and  men,  as  near  as 
can  be  ascertained.  The  desertion  of  the  barge,  the 
loss  of  the  boat  under  Cutting  Lunt  off  the  Irish 
coast,  the  various  details  by  which  the  several  prizes 
had  been  manned,  and  the  absence  of  the  boat  sent 
that  morning  under  the  charge  of  Henry  Lunt, 
which  had  not,  and  did  not  come  back  until  after 
the  action,  had  reduced  the  original  number  to  these 
figures.  A  most  serious  feature  of  the  situation 
was  the  lack  of  capable  sea  officers.  There  were 


!g0  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

so  few  of  the  latter  on  board  the  Richard  originally 
that  the  absence  of  the  two  mentioned  seriously 
hampered  her  work.  Dale  himself  was  a  host. 
Those  that  remained,  who,  with  the  exception  of  the 
purser,  sailing  master,  and  the  officers  of  the  French 
contingent,  were  young  and  inexperienced,  mostly 
midshipmen — boys,  in  fact — made  up  for  their  de- 
ficiencies by  their  zeal  and  courage.  The  officers  of 
the  French  contingent  proved  themselves  to  be  men 
of  a  high  class,  who  could  be  depended  upon  in 
desperate  emergencies. 

The  Serapis  was  a  brand-new,  double-banked 
frigate,  of  about  eight  hundred  tons  burden — that 
is,  she  carried  guns  on  two  covered  and  one  uncov- 
ered decks.  This  was  an  unusual  arrangement,  not 
subsequently  considered  advantageous  or  desir- 
able, but  it  certainly  enabled  her  to  present  a  for- 
midable battery  within  a  rather  short  length  ;  her 
shortness,  it  was  believed,  would  greatly  enhance 
her  handiness  and  mobility,  qualities  highly  desir- 
able in  a  war  vessel,  especially  in  the  narrow  seas. 
On  the  lower  or  main  deck  twenty  i8-pounders 
were  mounted  ;  on  the  gun  deck  proper,  twenty  9- 
pounders ;  and  on  the  spar  deck,  ten  6-pounders, 
making  a  total  of  fifty  guns,  twenty-five  in  broad- 
side, throwing  three  hundred  pounds'  weight  of  shot 
at  each  discharge  as  against  the  Richard's  one  hun- 
dred and  seventy-four.  She  was  manned  by  about 
three  hundred  trained  and  disciplined  English  sea- 
men, forming  a  homogeneous,  efficient  crew,  and 
well  they  proved  their  quality.  Richard  Pearson, 
her  captain,  was  a  brave,  competent,  and  successful 
officer,  who  had  enjoyed  a  distinguished  career,  win- 


THE    FRIGATE   SERAPIS.  jgl 

ning  his  rank  by  gallant  and  daring  enterprises ; 
no  ordinary  man,  indeed,  but  one  from  whom  much 
was  to  be  expected. 

In  making  this  comparison  between  the  two 
ships  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  while  the  differ- 
ence in  the  number  of  guns — ten — was  not  great, 
yet  in  their  caliber  and  the  consequent  weight  of 
broadside  the  Richard  was  completely  outclassed. 
Then,  too,  the  penetrative  power  of  an  1 8-pound 
gun  is  vastly  greater  than  that  of  a  1 2-pound  gun,  a 
thing  well  understood  by  naval  men,  though  scarcely 
appearing  of  much  moment  on  paper.  Indeed,  it 
was  a  maxim  that  a  1 2-pound  frigate  could  not  suc- 
cessfully engage  an  i8-pounder,  or  an  1 8-pound 
frigate  cope  with  a  24-pound  ship.* 

In  addition  to  this  vast  preponderance  in  actual 
fighting  force,  there  was  another  great  advantage  to 
the  Serapis  in  the  original  composition  of  her  crew 
as  compared  with  the  heterogeneous  crowd  which 
Jones  had  been  compelled  to  hammer  into  shape. 
Worthily,  indeed,  did  both  bodies  of  men  demon- 
strate their  courage  and  show  the  effect  of  their 
training.  There  was  a  further  superiority  in  the 
English  ship  in  that  she  was  built  for  warlike  pur- 
poses, and  was  not  a  converted  and  hastily  adapted 
merchant  vessel.  She  was  of  much  heavier  con- 
struction, with  more  massive  frames,  stouter  sides, 
rnd  heavier  scantling.  The  last  advantage  Pear- 
son's ship  possessed  was  in  her  superior  mobility 


*  The  English  learned  this  in  1812,  when  with  the  long 
eighteens  of  the  Guerriere  and  the  Java  they  tackled  the 
long  twenty-fours  of  the  Constitution's  broadside. 


!g2  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

and  speed.  She  should  have  been  able  to  choose  and 
maintain  her  distance,  so  that  with  her  longer  and 
heavier  guns  she  could  batter  the  Richard  to  pieces 
at  pleasure,  herself  being  immune  from  the  latter's 
feebler  attack. 

In  but  one  consideration  was  the  Richard  supe- 
rior to  the  Serapis,  and  that  was  in  the  personality 
of  the  man  behind  the  men  behind  the  guns !  Pear- 
son was  a  very  gallant  officer.  There  was  no  blem- 
ish upon  his  record,  no  question  as  to  his  capacity. 
In  personal  bravery  he  was  not  inferior  to  any  one. 
As  a  seaman  he  worthily  upheld  the  high  reputation 
of  the  great  navy  to  which  he  belonged ;  but  as  a 
man,  as  a  personality,  he  was  not  to  be  mentioned 
in  the  same  breath  with  Jones. 

This  is  no  discredit  to  that  particular  English- 
man, for  the  same  disadvantageous  comparison  to 
Jones  would  have  to  be  made  in  the  case  of  almost 
any  other  man  that  sailed  the  sea.  There  was  about 
the  little  American  such  Homeric  audacity,  such 
cool-headed  heroism,  such  unbreakable  determina- 
tion, such  unshakable  resolution,  that  so  long  as  he 
lived  it  was  impossible  to  conquer  him.  They  might 
knock  mast  after  mast  out  of  the  Richard ;  they 
might  silence  gun  after  gun  in  her  batteries ;  man 
after  man  might  be  killed  upon  her  decks;  they 
might  smash  the  ship  to  pieces  and  sink  her  beneath 
his  feet,  but  there  was  no  power  on  earth  which 
could  compel  him  to  strike  her  flag. 

Jones  was  the  very  incarnation  of  the  indomi- 
table Ego:  a  soul  that  laughed  at  odds,  that  despised 
opposition,  that  knew  but  one  thing  after  the  battle 
was  joined — to  strike  and  strike  hard,  until  opposi- 


THE    INDOMITABLE   EGO.  183 

tion  was  battered  down  or  the  soul  of  the  striker 
had  fled.  In  action  he  would  be  master — or  dead. 
But  his  fighting  was  no  baresark  fury  ;  no  blind,  wild 
rage  of  struggle ;  no  ungovernable  lust  for  battle ; 
it  was  the  apotheosis  of  cool-blooded  calculation. 
He  fought  with  his  head  as  well  as  with  his  heart, 
and  he  knew  perfectly  well  what  he  was  about  all 
the  time.  Pearson  was  highly  trained  matter  of 
first-rate  composition ;  Jones  was  mind,  and  his 
superiority  over  matter  was  inevitable.  The  hot- 
tempered  spirit  of  the  man  which  involved  him  in  so 
many  difficulties,  which  made  him  quarrelsome,  con- 
trary, and  captious,  gave  place  to  a  coolness  and 
calmness  as  great  as  his  courage  in  the  presence 
of  danger,  in  the  moment  of  action.  By  his  skill,  his 
ability,  his  address,  his  persistence,  his  staying 
power,  his  hardihood,  Jones  deserved  that  victory 
which  his  determination  absolutely  wrested  from 
overwhelming  odds,  disaster,  and  defeat.  The  chief 
players  in  the  grim  game,  therefore,  were  but  ill 
matched,  and  not  all  the  superiority  in  the  pawns 
upon  the  chessboard  could  overcome  the  fearful 
odds  under  which  the  unconscious  Pearson  labored. 
We  pity  Pearson ;  in  Jones'  hands  he  was  as  help- 
less as  Pontius  Pilate. 

The  crew  of  the  Richard,  having  had  supper  and 
grog,  had  long  since  gone  to  their  stations  to  the 
music  of  the  same  grim  call  of  the  beat  to  quarters 
which  had  rolled  upon  the  decks  of  every  war  ship 
of  every  nation  which  had  joined  battle  for  perhaps 
two  hundred  years.  Jones  was  a  great  believer  in 
drill  and  gun  practice.  His  experience  on  his  first 
cruise  in  the  Alfred,  if  nothing  else,  had  taught  him 


jg4  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

that,  and  upon  this  ill-found  ship  with  its  motley 
crew  probably  a  more  thorough  regimen  of  control 
and  discipline  existed  than  could  be  found  in  any 
other  ship  afloat.  Frequent  target  practice  was  had, 
too,  and  the  result  proved  the  value  of  the  exercise. 
Had  this  not  been  the  case  the  approaching  battle 
might  have  had  a  different  termination. 

The  great  guns  had  been  cast  loose  and  pro- 
vided ;  having  been  run  in  and  loaded,  they  were  run 
out  and  a  turn  taken  with  the  training  tackles  to 
hold  them  steady.  The  magazines  had  been  opened, 
and  the  gunner  and  his  mates  stationed  inside  the 
wetted  woolen  screen,  which  minimized  the  danger 
of  fire,  to  hand  out  charges  of  powder  to  the  lads 
called  powder  boys,  or  powder  "  monkeys,"  who, 
with  their  canvas  carrying  boxes,  were  clustered 
about  the  hatches.  The  gun  captains  saw  that  the 
guns  were  properly  primed,  and  they  looked  care- 
fully after  the  slow  matches  used  to  discharge  the 
pieces,  keeping  them  lighted  and  freely  burning. 
In  the  iron  racks  provided  were  laid  rows  of  round 
shot,  with  here  and  there  a  stand  of  grape.  Arm 
chests  were  opened  and  cutlasses  and  pistols  dis- 
tributed, and  the  racks  filled  with  boarding  pikes. 
Many  of  the  officers  discarded  their  hats  and  put 
on  round  steel  boarding  caps  with  dropped  cheek 
pieces.  Swords  were  buckled  on  and  the  priming 
of  pistols  carefully  looked  to.  The  men  in  many 
cases  stripped  off  their  shirts  and  jackets,  laid  aside 
caps  and  shoes,  and  slipped  into  their  stations  half 
naked,  with  only  a  pair  of  trousers  and  their  arms 
upon  them.  Division  tubs  filled  with  water  were 
placed  conveniently  at  hand,  and  the  decks  were 


PREPARATIONS   FOR   ACTION.  ^5 

well  sanded  to  prevent  them  from  becoming  slip- 
pery with  blood  when  the  action  began.  The  pumps 
were  overhauled  and  put  in  good  condition,  and 
hose  led  along  the  decks  in  case  of  fire.  The  car- 
penter and  his  mates,  well  provided  with  shot  plugs 
to  stop  up  possible  holes,  were  stationed  in  the  more 
vulnerable  parts  of  the  ship.  The  boats  were 
wrapped  with  canvas  to  prevent  splintering  under 
heavy  shot,  and  heavy  nettings  triced  up  fore  and 
aft  as  a  protection  against  boarders.  Preventer 
braces  were  rove  from  the  more  important  yardarms, 
the  heavier  yards  were  slung  with  chains,  and  the 
principal  rigging,  including  the  backstays,  stop- 
pered to  minimize  the  danger  in  case  they  should  be 
carried  away  by  shot.  Grapnels,  strong  iron  hooks 
securely  fastened  to  the  ends  of  stout  ropes  or  slen- 
der iron  chains,  were  swung  from  every  yardarm, 
and  laid  along  the  bulwarks  in  case  it  became  pos- 
sible or  desirable  to  lash  the  ships  together.  Every- 
thing which  would  impede  the  working  of  the  guns 
or  hinder  the  fighting  of  the  men  was  either  stowed 
below  or  thrown  overboard.  Around  the  masts  and 
at  the  braces  the  sail  trimmers  were  clustered,  some 
of  them  armed  with  boarding  axes  or  hatchets, 
handy  for  cutting  away  wreckage.  Aft  on  the  quar- 
ter-deck and  forward  on  the  forecastle  large  bodies 
of  French  marines  were  drawn  up,  musket  in  hand. 
The  broad,  old-fashioned  tops  of  the  Richard 
were  filled  with  seamen  and  marines,  armed  with 
muskets  and  having  buckets  full  of  small  grenades 
close  at  hand.  Among  these  seamen  were  many  of 
the  more  agile  and  daring  among  the  topmen — who 
from  their  stations  in  making  and  taking  in  sail  were 


i86  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

designated  as  "  light  yardmen  " — while  the  marines 
stationed  in  the  tops  were  selected  for  their  skill  as 
marksmen.  The  main  body  of  the  crew  was  dis- 
tributed at  the  battery  of  great  guns  on  the  main 
deck,  which  were  in  charge  of  Richard  Dale  and  a 
French  lieutenant  colonel  of  infantry,  named  de 
Weibert.  In  the  gloomy  recesses  of  the  gun  room, 
close  to  the  water  line,  a  little  group  of  men  was 
told  off  to  fight  the  heavy  i8-pounders.  Around  the 
hatches  leading  to  the  hold  was  stationed  another 
body  of  seamen  and  marines  with  the  master  at 
arms,  all  armed  to  the  teeth,  to  guard  the  English 
prisoners,  whose  number  is  variously  stated  from 
two  to  three  hundred.  The  relieving  tackles  to  use 
in  steering  the  ship  in  case  the  wheel  was  carried 
away  occupied  the  attention  of  another  group. 

Far  below  the  water  line  in  the  dark  depths  of 
the  ship — a  bloody  place  familiarly  known  as  the 
cockpit — the  surgeon  and  his  mates  unconcernedly 
spread  out  the  foreboding  array  of  ghastly  instru- 
ments and  appliances  of  the  rude  surgery  of  the  rude 
period,  in  anticipation  of  the  demands  certain  to  be 
made  upon  them.  At  the  break  of  the  poop  a  vet- 
eran quarter-master  and  several  assistants  stood 
grasping  the  great  wheel  of  the  ship  with  sturdy 
fingers.  Little  groups  of  men  were  congregated  on 
the  quarter-deck  and  forecastle  and  in  the  gangways 
to  man  the  Q-pounders,  which  were  to  play  so  im- 
portant a  part  in  the  action.  Jones  himself,  a  quiet, 
composed  little  figure  of  slender  proportions,  paced 
steadily  to  and  fro  athwart  the  ship,  now  eagerly 
peering  ahead  as  the  shades  of  night  descended,  now 
casting  a  solemn  glance  aloft  at  the  swelling  canvas 


THE   ADVANCE   OF    THE    RICHARD.  ]  g/ 

softly  rounded  out  into  huge  curves  in  the  gentle 
breeze.  Ever  and  anon  he  threw  a  keen  glance  back 
toward  the  Alliance.  When  his  gaze  fell  upon  her, 
the  compression  of  his  lips  and  the  fierceness  of  his 
look  boded  ill  for  Landais  when  he  had  time  to  deal 
with  him. 

What  must  have  been  his  thoughts  in  this  mo- 
mentous hour !  One  likes  to  dwell  upon  him  there 
and  then ;  so  alone  and  so  undaunted  on  that  old 
deck  in  that  gray  twilight,  resolutely  proceeding  to 
battle  with  a  ship  which,  now  that  it  was  in  plain 
view,  his  practised  eye  easily  determined  surpassed 
his  own  in  every  particular.  At  such  a  moment,  when 
every  faculty  of  his  mind  naturally  would  be  needed 
to  fight  his  own  vessel,  suggestions  of  treachery  and 
disobedience  and  an  utter  inability  to  tell  what  his 
cowardly  and  soon-to-be-proved  traitorous  subordi- 
nate would  do,  made  his  situation  indeed  unbear- 
able. But  he  dismissed  all  these  things  from  his 
mind.  Confident  in  the  justice  of  his  cause — in  the 
approval  of  Heaven  for  that  cause — and  full  of  trust 
in  his  own  ability  and  personality,  he  put  these 
things  out  of  his  head  and  swept  on.  He  was  a 
figure  to  inspire  confidence  on  the  deck  of  any  ship. 
The  men,  who  had  perhaps  as  vivid  an  appreciation 
of  their  situation  and  all  its  dangers  as  he  had  him- 
self, looked  to  their  captain  and  took  confidence  in 
the  quiet  poise  of  the  lithe  figure  at  the  break  of  the 
poop,  balancing  itself  so  easily  to  the  lumbering  roll 
of  the  great  ship.  The  young  midshipmen,  his  per- 
sonal aides,  slightly  withdrawn  from  close  contact 
with  him,  respected  his  silence  as  he  paced  to 
and  fro. 


jgg  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

Presently  another  graceful  active  figure,  belong- 
ing to  the  first  lieutenant  of  the  ship,  came  running 
from  below,  walked  rapidly  along  the  deck,  sprang 
up  the  ladder,  and  stopped  before  the  little  captain, 
whom  he  overtowered  to  a  degree.  He  saluted 
gravely,  and  announced  that  the  Richard  was  clear, 
the  men  at  quarters,  and  the  ship  was  ready  for 
action.  After  a  few  moments  of  conversation  Jones 
and  Dale  descended  to  the  lower  deck  and  walked 
through  the  ship.  A  hearty  word  of  appreciation 
and  encouragement  here  and  there,  as  occasion  sug- 
gested, heartened  and  stimulated  the  reckless  crew, 
until  they  had  almost  risen  to  the  captain's  level. 
Presently  he  returned  to  the  deck  alone.  A  few  final 
directions,  one  last  glance  of  approval  at  the  Pallas 
closing  in  on  the  Scarborough,  one  last  regret,  one 
last  flush  of  indignation  as  he  looked  toward  the 
Alliance  — r  a  moment,  and  the  battle  would  be 
•joined. 

It  was  about  seven  o'clock  in  the  evening.  The 
harvest  moon  had  long  since  risen  in  the  eastern  sky, 
and  was  flooding  the  pallid  sea  with  its  glorious 
radiance.  On  the  western  horizon  the  broad,  bright 
beacon  of  Flamborough  Head  was  sending  out  its 
bright  ray  of  yellow  light  over  the  trembling  water. 
With  a  night  glass,  clusters  of  people  could  be  seen 
upon  the  shore  and  upon  the  ships  anchored  under 
the  guns  of  Scarborough  Castle,  towering  grim  and 
black  against  the  horizon.  Ahead  was  the  white 
Serapis,  calmly  confident,  lying  broadside  on,  port 
shutters  triced  up,  lights  streaming  from  every 
opening.  She  lay  with  her  topsails  to  the  mast,  gal- 
lantly waiting.  Upon  her,  too,  like  preparations  for 


THE   BATTLE   WITH    THE   SERAPIS. 


189 


combat  had  been  made.  Along  her  decks  the  same 
beating  call  to  battle  had  rolled.  Men  who  spake 
the  same  language,  who  read  the  same  Bible,  who 
but  a  few  years  since  had  loved  the  same  flag,  who 
had  vied  with  each  other  in  loyalty  to  a  common 
king,  now  made  ready  to  hurl  death  and  destruction 
at  each  other.  Presently  sharp  words  of  command 
rang  out ;  there  was  a  sudden  bustle  on  the  deck  of 
the  English  ship.  The  braces  were  manned,  the 
yards  swung,  and  the  Serapis  slowly  gathered  way 
and  gently  forged  ahead.  Then  all  was  still  once 
more  on  the  serene  English  ship. 

As  the  Richard  drew  nearer  to  the  Serapis  a  deep 
silence  settled  over  the  American  ship.  Even  over 
the  roughest  and  rudest  among  her  crew  crept  a 
feeling  of  awe  at  the  terrible  possibilities  of  the  next 
few  moments.  The  magnitude  of  their  task  as  they 
came  nearer  became  more  apparent.  Forced  laugh- 
ter died  away ;  coarse  words  remained  unspoken ; 
lips  foreign  to  prayer  formed  words  of  belated  and 
broken  petition.  Thoughts  went  back  to  home :  to 
sunny  fields  and  vine-clad  cottages  in  France ;  to 
frontier  huts  in  verdant  clearings  in  America ;  to 
rude  houses  in  seaboard  towns  where  the  surf  of  the 
western  ocean  broke  in  wild  thunder  upon  the  rocky 
shore.  Pictures  of  wives,  of  children,  of  mothers, 
of  sweethearts,  rose  before  the  misted  vision.  Here 
and  there  a  younger  man  choked  down  a  sob.  The 
rude  jests  with  which  men  sometimes  strive  to  dis- 
guise emotion  fell  unnoticed,  or  were  sternly  repre- 
hended by  the  older  and  more  thoughtful.  The 
fitful  conversation  died  away,  and  the  silence  was 
broken  only  by  the  soft  sigh  of  the  wind  through 


igO  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

the  top  hamper,  the  gentle  flap  of  the  lighter  sails 
as  the  pitch  of  the  ship  threw  the  canvas  back  and 
forth,  the  soft  splash  of  the  bluff  bows  through  the 
water,  the  straining  of  the  timbers,  the  creak  of  the 
cordage  through  the  blocks.  Candle-filled  battle 
lanterns  in  long  rows  throughout  the  ship  shed  a 
dim  radiance  over  the  bodies  of  the  stalwart,  half- 
naked,  barefooted  men.  Here  and  there  a  brighter 
flash  told  of  moonlight  reflected  from  some  gleam- 
ing sword. 

And  the  ships  drew  nearer — nearer.  In  a  mo- 
ment the  dogs  of  war  would  be  loose.  Presently  a 
sound  broke  the  silence,  a  hail  from  the  English 
ship.  A  man  leaped  up  on  her  rail  and  a  cry  came 
faintly  up  through  a  hollowed  hand  against  the 
gentle  breeze : 

"What  ship  is  that?" 

The  Richard  had  been  kept  skillfully  end  on  to 
the  Serapis,  and  the  commander  of  the  latter  ship 
had  still  some  lingering  doubts  as  to  her  nationality. 
Measuring  the  distance  between  the  two  ships, 
Jones  quickly  motioned  to  the  watchful  quarter- 
master beneath  him.  With  eager  hands  the  men 
began,  spoke  by  spoke,  to  shift  the  helm  to  star- 
board. As  the  American  ship  began  to  swing  to 
port  it  would  be  but  a  moment  before  her  broadside 
would  be  revealed  and  concealment  at  an  end.  That 
precious  moment,  however,  Jones  would  have.  He 
sprang  on  the  taffrail  to  starboard,  and,  catching 
hold  of  the  backstay,  leaned  far  out  and  called 
loudly : 

"  I  do  not  understand  you." 

The  Richard  was  swinging  still  more  now.    The 


THE   BATTLE    IS   ON.  191 

English  caught  a  glimpse  of  a  lighted  port  forward. 
From  it  a  huge  gun  thrust  its  muzzle  out  into  the 
night.  Quick  and  sharp  came  the  hail  once  more : 

"  Wrhat  ship  is  that  ?    Answer  at  once  or  I  fire !  " 

With  what  breathless  silence  the  two  ships  lis- 
tened for  the  reply ! 

The  helm  was  hard  over  now,  the  quartermas- 
ters holding  it  down  with  grim  determination,  sweat 
pouring  from  their  foreheads,  the  ship  swinging 
broadside  in  to,  and  a  little  forward  of,  the  Eng- 
lishman. Bending  over  toward  the  quarter-deck,  in 
a  clear  voice  heard  throughout  his  ship,  Jones  called 
out  a  sharp  word  of  command.  Even  as  he  spoke 
a  line  of  fire  lanced  out  into  the  night,  followed  by 
the  roar  of  one  of  the  i2-pounders.  It  was  an  an- 
swer not  to  be  mistaken.  Immediately  the  whole 
broadside  of  the  Richard  was  let  go.  Simultane- 
ously the  iron  throats  on  the  Serapis  belched  forth 
their  rain  of  hell  arid  destruction,  and  the  great 
battle  was  on  !  It  was  perhaps  a  quarter  after  seven. 
Side  by  side  the  two  ships,  covered  with  blinding 
smoke,  sailed  in  the  still  night,  broadside  answer- 
ing broadside,  the  roar  of  the  great  guns  sounding 
in  one  horrible  continuous  note  vibrating  over  the 
ocean.  The  thunderous  diapason  was  punctuated 
by  the  sharp  staccato  rattle  of  the  small  arms. 

The  Richard,  having  more  way  on  her,  forged 
slightly  ahead  of  the  Serapis,  which  had  so  lately 
filled  away  that  she  had  scarcely  yet  begun  to  move. 
Jones,  watchful  of  his  opportunity,  swung  the  head 
of  his  ship  in  toward  the  English  frigate,  hoping 
to  cross  her  bows  and  rake  her ;  but  the  careful 
Pearson,  presently  feeling  the  wind,  gathered  way 


IQ2  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

and  with  his  superior  speed  easily  regained  his  dis- 
tance. The  game  was  being  played  as  he  would  have 
it,  and  the  bolts  from  his  long  eighteens  were  mak- 
ing havoc  of  the  Richard.  Jones  now  determined  to 
back  his  topsails,  check  the  speed  of  his  own  ship, 
allow  the  Serapis  to  forge  ahead,  and  then  fill  away 
again,  and  rush  the  Richard  alongside  the  English 
frigate  so  that  he  could  board  and  make  use  of  his 
preponderant  force  of  soldiery.  Accordingly,  the 
way  of  his  frigate  was  checked  and  the  Serapis  drew 
slightly  ahead,  receiving  the  fire  of  the  Richard's 
battery  as  she  passed,  and  maintaining  her  own  fire 
in  the  smoke  and  darkness  for  some  moments,  until 
Pearson  discovered  that  he  had  passed  ahead  of  the 
Richard.  The  way  of  his  ship  was  immediately 
checked.  The  conflict  had  been  maintained  with 
incredible  fierceness  for  more  than  three  quarters 
of  an  hour. 

As  soon  as  Jones  had  gained  sufficient  distance, 
he  smartly  filled  away  again  and  headed  the  clumsy 
Richard  at  the  Serapis;  but  the  slow  old  vessel  was 
not  equal  to  the  demands  of  her  commander.  The 
Richard  only  succeeded  in  striking  the  Serapis  on 
the  port  quarter  very  far  aft.  To  have  attempted 
boarding  from  such  a  position  would  have  been 
madness.  There  are  only  two  positions  from  which 
a  ship  can  be  boarded  advantageously.  In  one  case, 
when  two  ships  are  laid  side  by  side,  by  massing 
the  crew  at  some  point  of  the  long  line  of  defense 
necessitated  by  the  relative  position  of  the  vessels, 
it  may  be  possible  to  break  through  and  effect  a 
lodgment  on  the  enemy's  deck.  The  other  case  is 
when  the  ship  desirous  of  boarding  succeeds  in 


"HAVE   YOU    STRUCK?" 


193 


crossing  the  bows  of  her  enemy  so  that  the  latter 
vessel  is  subjected  to  a  raking  fire  from  the  battery 
of  the  attacking  ship,  which  beats  down  opposition 
and  sweeps  everything  before  it,  thus  affording  a 
chance  for  favorable  attack.  Neither  of  these  op- 
portunities was  presented  at  this  time. 

Jones,  nevertheless,  mustered  his  boarders  on 
the  forecastle  at  this  moment,  heading  them  himself, 
but  the  English  appeared  in  such  force  at  the  point 
of  contact  that  the  attempt  was  of  necessity  aban- 
doned. The  two  ships  hung  together  a  moment, 
then  separated,  and,  the  Serapis  going  ahead,  the 
Richard  backing  off,  they  formed  a  line  ahead, 
the  bow  of  the  Richard  following  the  stern  of 
the  Serapis.  There  was  not  a  single  great  gun 
which  bore  on  either  ship.  The  roar  of  the  battle 
died  away,  and  even  the  crackle  of  the  small  arms 
ceased  for  a  space.  At  this  moment  Pearson 
hailed  the  Richard.  Having  been  subjected  to  the 
battering  of  his  superior  force  for  so  long  a  time, 
Pearson  concluded  that  it  was  time  for  the  Richard 
to  surrender.  He  was  right  in  theory — in  practice  it 
was  different.  His  own  ship  had  suffered  severely 
in  the  yardarm  to  yardarm  fight,  and  he  realized 
that  the  loss  upon  the  Richard  must  have  been  pro- 
portionately greater.  .  Even  the  most  unskilled  sea- 
man had  learned  by  this  time  the  difference  in  the 
power  of  the  two  vessels.  Therefore,  taking  advan- 
tage of  the  momentary  cessation  of  the  battle,  he 
sprang  up  on  the  rail  of  the  Serapis  in  the  moon- 
light and  called  out : 

"  Have  you  struck  ?  " 

And  to  this  interrogation  Paul  Jones  returned 


1 94  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONKS. 

that  heroic  answer,  which  since  his  day  has  been  the 
watchword  of  the  American  sailor : 

"  /  have  not  yet  begun  to  fight! "  he  cried  with 
gay  audacity. 

The  ringing  tones  of  his  voice  carried  his  an- 
swer not  only  to  the  ears  of  the  English  captain,  but 
threw  it  far  up  into  the  high  tops  where  the  eager 
seamen  had  so  busily  plied  their  small  arms.  The 
men  on  the  gun  deck  heard  it  with  joy.  It  even 
penetrated  to  the  gloomy  recesses  of  the  gun  room, 
which  had  been  the  scene  of  such  misfortune  and 
disaster  as  would  have  determined  the  career  of  any 
other  ship.  The  wounded  caught  the  splendid  in- 
spiration which  was  back  of  the  glorious  declaration, 
and  under  the  influence  of  it  stifled  their  groans, 
forgot  their  wounds,  and  strove  to  fight  on.  It  told 
the  dying  that  their  lives  were  not  to  be  given  in 
vain.  Nay,  those  mighty  words  had  a  carrying 
power  which  lifted  them  above  the  noise  of  the  con- 
flict, which  sent  them  ringing  over  the  narrow  seas, 
until  they  reverberated  in  the  Houses  of  Parliament 
on  the  one  side  and  the  Court  of  Versailles  on  the 
other.  They  had  a  force  which  threw  them  across 
the  thousand  leagues  of  ocean  until  they  were  heard 
in  every  patriot  camp,  and  repeated  from  the  deck  of 
every  American  ship,  until  they  became  a  part  of 
the  common  heritage  of  the  nation  as  eternal  as  are 
its  Stripes  and  Stars !  The  dauntless  phrase  of  that 
dauntless  man : 

"  /  hare  not  yet  begun  to  fight!  " 

It  was  no  new  message.  The  British  had  heard 
it  as  they  tramped  again  and  again  up  the  bullet- 
swept  slopes  of  Bunker  Hill ;  Washington  rang  it 


"I  HAVE  NOT  YET  BEGUN  TO  FIGHT!"  195 

in  the  ears  of  the  Hessians  on  the  snowy  Christmas 
morning  at  Trenton  ;  the  hoof  beats  of  Arnold's 
horse  kept  time  to  it  in  the  wild  charge  at  Saratoga  ; 
it  cracked  with  the  whip  of  the  old  wagoner  Morgan 
at  the  Cowpens ;  the  Maryland  troops  drove  it  home 
in  the  hearts  of  their  enemies  with  Greene  at  Guil- 
ford  Courthouse,  and  the  drums  of  France  and  Eng- 
land beat  it  into  Cornwallis'  ears  when  the  end 
came  at  Yorktown.  There,  that  night  in  that  dark- 
ness, in  that  still  moment  of  battle,  Paul  Jones  de- 
clared the  determination  of  a  great  people.  His  was 
the  expression  of  an  inspiration  on  the  part  of  a  new 
nation.  From  this  man  came  a  statement  of  an  un- 
shakable determination  at  whatever  cost  to  be  free ! 
A  new  Declaration  of  Independence,  this  famous 
word  of  warning  to  the  British  king.  Give  up  the 
contest  now,  O  monarch !  A  greater  majesty  than 
thine  is  there ! 

I  imagine  a  roar  of  wild  exultation  quivering 
from  truck  to  keelson,  a  gigantic  Homeric  laugh 
rising  from  the  dry  throats  of  the  rough  men  as  yet 
unharmed  on  the  Richard  as  they  caught  the  sig- 
nificance of  their  captain's  reply.  "  It  was  a  joke, 
the  character  of  which  those  blood-stained  ruffians 
could  well  appreciate ;  but  the  captain  was  in  no 
mood  for  joking.  He  was  serious,  and  in  the  sim- 
plicity of  the  answer  lay  its  greatness.  Strike !  Not 
now,  nor  never!  Beaten!  The  fighting  is  but  just 
begun !  The  preposterous  possibility  of  surrender 
can  not  even  be  considered.  What  manner  of  man 
this,  with  whom  you  battle  in  the  moonlight,  brave 
Pearson !  An  unfamiliar  kind  to  you  and  to  most ; 
such  as  hath  not  been  before,  nor  shall  be  again. 


I96  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

Yet  all  the  world  shall  see  and  understand  at  this 
time. 

"' '  /  have  not  yet  begun  to  fight! ' 

"  Surprising  answer !  On  a  ship  shattered  be- 
yond repair,  her  best  guns  exploded  and  useless,  her 
crew  decimated,  ringed  about  with  dead  and  dying, 
the  captain  had  not  yet  begun  to  fight !  But  there 
was  no  delay  after  the  answer,  no  philosophizing,  no 
heroics.  The  man  of  action  was  there.  He  meant 
business.  Every  moment  when  the  guns  were  silent 
wasted  one."  * 

The  Richard  was  in  a  dreadful  condition,  espe- 
cially below.  At  the  first  fire  two  of  the  i8-pounders 
in  the  gun  room  had  exploded,  killing  most  of  the 
officers  and  men  of  their  crews,  blowing  out  the  side 
of  the  ship,  shattering  the  stanchions,  blowing  up 
the  deck  above' them,  and  inflicting  injuries  of  so 
serious,  a  character  that  they  virtually  settled  the 
fate  of  the  ship.  The  other  guns  there  were  imme- 
diately abandoned,  and  the  men  left  alive  in  the  divi- 
sion, who  were  not  required  to  guard  the  prisoners, 
were  sent  to  the  gun  deck  to  report  to  Dale  and 
de  Weibert.  The  battery  which  had  been  the  main 
dependence  of  Jones  had  proved  worse  than  useless. 
Indeed,  it  had  done  more  harm  than  had  the  guns 
of  the  Serapis.  I  know  of  no  action  between  two 
ships  in  which  a  similar,  or  even  a  less  frightful, 
happening  did  not  cause  the  ship  suffering  it  to 
surrender  at  once. 

The  two  ships  hung  in  line  for  a  moment,  then 
Jones  put  his  helm  hard  astarboard  again  and 

*  From  the  author's  novel,  The  Grip  of  Honor. 


"DON'T    SWEAR,    MR.    STACY."  197 

swung  off  to  port,  perhaps  hoping  to  rake  the  Sera- 
pis  ;  but  the  English  captain,  anticipating  his  ma- 
neuver, backed  his  own  topsails,  and  the  two  ships 
passed  by  each  other  once  more,  the  batteries  re- 
opening their  fire  at  close  range.  The  combat  at 
once  recommenced  with  the  most  heroic  determina- 
tion. Fortunately,  however,  the  captain  of  the 
Serapis  miscalculated  either  the  speed  at  which  his 
own  ship  backed  or  the  speed  with  which  the 
Richard  drew  ahead,  for,  before  Pearson  filled  away 
again,  Jones  had  drawn  so  far  ahead  that  by  con- 
summate seamanship  and  quick,  desperate  work  he 
managed  to  swing  the  Richard  across  the  path  of  the 
Serapis,  an  astonishing  feat  for  the  slower  and  more 
unwieldy  American  frigate.  It  was  his  one  oppor- 
tunity and  he  embraced  it — one  was  enough  for 
Jones.  Pearson  had  just  succeeded  in  checking  the 
stern  board  of  his  own  ship,  and  was  going  ahead 
slowly,  when  the  bow  of  his  frigate  ran  aboard  the 
starboard  quarter  of  the  American,  thrusting  her 
jib  boom  through  the  mizzen  rigging  far  across 
the  quarter-deck  of  the  Richard.  Pouring  a  raking 
fire  upon  the  English  frigate  from  his  starboard  bat- 
tery, Jones,  with  his  own  hand,  sprang  to  lash  the 
two  ships  together.  The  sailing  master,  Mr.  Stacy, 
leaped  to  assist  him.  As  the  officer  strove  to  over- 
haul the  gear  lying  in  a  tangled  mass  upon  the  deck, 
he  broke  into  the  natural  oath  of  a  sailor  at  the  delay. 
"  Don't  swear,  Mr.  Stacy,"  Jones  is  reported  to 
have  said  quietly,  although  he  was  working  with 
feverish  energy  to  the  same  end — "  in  another  mo- 
ment we  may  all  be  in  the  presence  of  our  Maker — 
but  let  us  do  our  duty." 


igg  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

The  lashing  was  soon  passed,  and  passed  well. 
The  American  boarders  were  called  away  again, 
but  they  could  do  nothing  in  the  face  of  the  sharp 
fire  of  the  English  repelling  force.  Meanwhile,  the 
pressure  of  the  wind  upon  the  after-sails  of  the 
Serapis  had  broken  off  her  bowsprit  and  forced  her 
stern  around  until  she  lay  broadside  to  the  American 
ship.  A  spare  anchor  on  the  Serapis  caught  in  the 
mizzen  chains  of  the  Richard,  and  with  it  and  the 
grapnels  which  were  hastily  flung  the  two  ships 
were  firmly  bound  together,  the  bow  of  one  ship 
by  the  stern  of  the  other,  heading  in  different  ways, 
their  starboard  sides  touching.  Pearson  at  once 
dropped  his  port  anchor,  hoping  that,  his  ship  be- 
ing anchored  and  the  Richard  under  way,  the  Amer- 
ican would  drag  clear,  when  his  superiority  in  gun 
power  would  enable  him  to  continue  the  process  of 
knocking  her  to  pieces  at  long  range ;  but,  for- 
tunately for  the  Richard,  the  wind  had  gradually 
decreased  until  it  was  now  nearly  killed,  or  so  light 
that  it  did  not  prevent  the  ships  from  swinging  to 
the  Serapis'  anchor  with  the  tidal  current  then  set- 
ting strongly  to  the  northward. 

It  was  some  time  after  eight  o'clock  now,  and  the 
battle  at  once  recommenced  with  the  utmost  fury. 
As  the  Serapis  had  not  hitherto  been  engaged  on 
the  starboard  side,*  it  was  necessary  for  her  men  to 
blow  off  the  port  lids  of  their  own  ship  at  the  first 
discharge  of  her  battery.  They  were  so  close  to- 
gether that  the  conflict  resolved  itself  into  a  hand-to- 
hand  encounter  with  great  guns.  As  Dale  said,  the 

*  See  remarks  on  page  226. 


IN    DEATH    GRAPPLE   JOINED. 


199 


sponges  and  rammers  had  to  be  extended  through 
the  ports  of  the  enemy  in  order  to  serve  the  guns. 
Though  the  American  batteries  were  fought  with 
the  utmost  resolution,  they  were,  of  course,  no  match 


PLAN  :  Showing  maneuvers  of  Bon  Homme  Richard  and  Serapis, 
September  23,  177^  ;  showing  also  course  and  conduct  of  Alliance.* 

4f(    Serapis. 

«tfo    Bon  Homme  Richard 
A,  Alliance.     C,  Countess  of  Scarborough.     P,  Pallas. 

c 


whatever  for  those  of  the  English  ship,  which  had 
two  tiers  of  heavier  guns  to  oppose  to  one  of  the 
American.  Below  decks,  therefore,  the  Americans 
were  at  a  fearful  disadvantage.  Above,  however, 
the  number  of  soldiers  and  marines,  constantly  re- 
enforced  by  a  stream  of  men  sent  from  below  as 
their  guns  were  put  out  of  action,  gave  them  a  com- 
pensating factor,  and  by  degrees  the  concentrated 
fire  of  the  Americans  cleared  the  deck  of  the  Serapis. 
The  two  ships  lying  side  by  side,  slowly  grinding 

*  After  a  drawing  by  Captain  A.  T.  Mahan,  U.  S.  N.,  by 
permission  of  Charles  Scribner's  Sons. 


200  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

together  in  the  gentle  sea,  the  yardarms  were  inter- 
laced and  the  American  topmen,  again  outnumber- 
ing their  English  antagonists,  ran  along  the  yards, 
and  a  dizzy  fight  in  midair  ensued,  as  the  result  of 
which,  after  suffering  severe  loss,  the  Americans 
gained  possession  of  the  British  maintop.  Turning 
their  fire  forward  and  aft,  aided  by  attacking  parties 
from  the  fore  and  crossjack  yards,  they  finally  cleared 
the  English  entirely  out  of  the  upper  works  of  their 
ship.  From  this  lofty  point  of  vantage  they  poured 
such  a  rain  of  fire  upon  the  Serapis  that  Pearson 
was  left  practically  alone  on  the  quarter-deck.  To 
a  chivalrous  admiration  for  his  courage  he  is  said 
to  owe  his  immunity.  He,  too,  should  have  his  meed 
of  praise  for  the  undaunted  heroism  with  which  he 
stood  alone  on  the  bullet-swept,  blood-stained 
planks,  maintained  his  position,  and  fought  his 
ship. 

Now,  to  go  back  a  little.  Shortly  after  the  two 
ships  were  lashed  together,  the  Alliance,  apparently 
having  recovered  from  her  hesitation,  came  sweep- 
ing toward  the  combatants,  and  deliberately  poured 
a  broadside  into  the  Richard,  which  did  not  a  little 
damage  and  killed  several  men.  In  spite  of  all  sig- 
nals, Landais  repeated  his  treacherous  performance, 
but  before  the  Richard's  men  could  fairly  realize  the 
astonishing  situation  he  sailed  away  from  them  and 
ran  over  before  the  wind  toward  the  Pallas,  which 
had  been  for  some  time  hotly  engaged  with  the 
Countess  of  Scarborough,  where  he  is  said  to  have 
done  the  same  thing.*  This  strange  action  of  the 

*  Doubtful. 


THE    RELEASE   OF   THE    PRISONERS.         2OI 

Alliance  had  but  little  effect  upon  the  battle  at  this 
time,  which  was  continued  with  unremitting  fury. 

One  by  one  the  small  guns  on  the  main  deck  of 
the  Richard  were  silenced.  The  crews  were  swept 
away,  guns  were  dismounted,  carriages  broken  and 
shattered,  and  finally  the  whole  side  of  the  Richard 
from  the  mainmast  aft  was  beaten  in ;  so  much  so, 
that  during  the  latter  part  of  the  action  the  shot  of 
the  Serapis  passed  completely  through  the  Richard, 
and,  meeting  no  opposition,  fell  harmlessly  into  the 
sea  far  on  the  other  side.  In  the  excitement  the 
English  never  thought  of  depressing  their  guns  and 
tearing  .the  bottom  out  of  the  Richard.  As  it  was, 
transoms  were. beaten  out,  stern  frames  were  cut  to 
pieces,  and  a  few  stanchions  alone  supported  the 
decks  above.  Why  they  did  not  collapse  and  fall 
into  the  hull  beneath  it,  with  the  guns  and  men  on 
them,  is  a  mystery.  In  addition  to  all  this,  the  ship 
was  on  fire  repeatedly,  and  men  were  continually 
called  away  from  their  stations  to  fight  the  flames. 

Dale  and  de  Weibert  had  just  fired  their  last 
shots  from  the  remaining  guns  of  the  main  battery 
which  were  serviceable  when  a  new  complication 
was  added  to  the  scene.  The  men  guarding  the  pris- 
oners had  been  gradually  picked  off  by  the  shot  of 
the  enemy.  The  Richard  was  leaking  rapidly,  and 
when  the  carpenter  sounded  the  well  a  little  after 
nine  o'clock,  late  in  the  action,  he  discovered  sev- 
eral feet  of  water  in  it.  In  great  alarm  he  shrieked 
out  that  they  were  sinking.  The  few  remaining  men 
in  the  gun  room  ran  for  the  hatchways.  The  mas- 
ter at  arms,  thinking  that  all  was  over,  unlocked  the 
hatches  and  released  the  prisoners,  crying  out  at 


202  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

the  same  time,  "  On  deck,  everybody ;  the  ship  is 
sinking !  "  The  Englishmen  in  panic  terror  scram- 
bled up  through  the  narrow  hatchways,  and  fought 
desperately  with  each  other  in  their  wild  hurry  to 
reach  the  deck,  where  the  carpenter  had  preceded 
them,  still  shouting  that  the  ship  was  sinking,  and 
now  crying  loudly,  "  Quarter !  Quarter !  " 

As  the  carpenter  ran  aft,  shouting  his  message  of 
fear  and  alarm,  he  was  followed  by  some  of  the  for- 
ward officers,  who,  catching  the  contagion  of  his  ter- 
ror, repeated  his  words.  Reaching  the  poop  deck, 
the  carpenter  fumbled  in  the  darkness  for  the  hal- 
liards to  haul  down  the  flag,  calling  out  to  Jones  that 
all  was  lost,  the  ship  sinking,  and  that  he  must  sur- 
render. Other  officers  and  men  joined  in  the  cry. 
It  was  another  critical  moment.  Pearson,  hearing 
the  commotion,  again  hailed,  asking  if  the  Richard 
had  struck.  Jones,  unable  to  stop  the  outcry  of  the 
terrified  carpenter,  smashed  his  skull  with  the  butt  of 
his  pistol,  and  answered  the  second  request  of  Pear- 
son with,  as  he  says,  a  most  determined  negative. 
We  can  imagine  it.  By  his  presence  of  mind  in  si- 
lencing the  carpenter,  and  a  supreme  exertion  of  his 
indomitable  will  power,  Jones  soon  succeeded  in 
checking  the  incipient  panic  on  the  spar  deck.  At 
this  period  of  the  fight  some  accounts  say  that  Pear- 
son called  his  boarders  from  below  and  attempted  to 
board.  The  advance  was  met  by  Jones  at  the  head 
of  a  few  men,  pike  in  hand,  with  such  firmness  that 
it  was  not  pressed  home,  and  the  men  returned  to 
their  stations  at  the  guns  and  resumed  the  fight. 

Meanwhile,  Richard  Dale,  seconded  by  his  mid- 
shipmen, with  rare  and  never-to-be-undervalued 


DALE'S    DECISIVE   ACTION. 


203 


presence  of  mind,  had  stopped  the  oncoming  rush 
of  frightened  English  prisoners,  who  now  greatly 
outnumbered  the  broken  crew  of  the  Richard.  He 
sprang  among  them,  beating  them  down,  driving 
them  back,  menacing  them  with  the  point  of  the 
sword,  at  the  same  time  telling  them  that  the  Eng- 
lish ship  was  sinking,  and  that  they  were  in  the  same 
condition,  and  unless  they  went  to  the  pumps  imme- 
diately all  hands  would  be  inevitably  lost.  The  au- 
dacity of  this  statement  was  worthy  of  Jones  himself. 
It  was  a  rare  action  on  the  part  of  a  boy  of  twenty- 
three  years  of  age.  Such  a  young  man  under  pres- 
ent conditions  in  the  United  States  Navy  probably 
would  be  filling  the  responsible  station  of  a  naval 
cadet  afloat !  *  Instantly  divining  this  new  peril,  the 
commodore  himself  sprang  to  the  hatchway  and 
seconded  Dale's  effort.  Incredible  as  it  seems,  the 
two  men  actually  forced  the  panic-stricken,  bewil- 
dered, and  terrified  English  prisoners  to  man  the 
pumps,  thus  relieving  a  number  of  the  crew  of  the 
Richard  ;  and  the  singular  spectacle  was  presented  of 
an  American  ship  kept  afloat  by  the  efforts  of  Eng- 
lishmen, and  thus  enabled  to  continue  an  almost 
hopeless  combat.  Dale,  with  imperturbable  au- 
dacity, remained  below  in  command  of  them. 

The  Richard  was  a  wreck.  She  had  been  fought 
to  a  standstill.  Her  battery  was  silenced,  her  decks 
were  filled  with  released  prisoners,  she  was  making 
water  fast,  she  was  on  fire  in  two  or  three  places ; 
numbers  of  her  crew  had  been  killed  and  wounded, 
the  water  had  overflowed  the  cockpit,  and  the 

*  Possibly  he  might  be  an  ensign. 


204  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

frightened  surgeon  had  been  driven  to  the  deck, 
where,  in  conjunction  with  some  of  the  French  offi- 
cers, he  counseled  surrender. 

"  What !  "  cried  Paul  Jones,  smiling  at  the  sur- 
geon, "  What,  doctor !  Would  you  have  me  strike 
to  a  drop  of  water?  Help  me  to  get  this  gun 
over ! " 

But  the  doctor,  liking  the  looks  of  things  on 
deck  even  less  than  below,  ran  down  the  hatchway, 
and,  his  station  untenable,  wandered  to  and  fro  and 
ministered  to  the  wounded  on  every  side  as  best  he 
could.  Meanwhile  Jones  had  taken  the  place  of  the 
purser,  Mr.  Mease,  commanding  the  upper  battery, 
who  had  been  severely  wounded  and  forced  to  leave 
his  station.  The  commodore  was  personally  direct- 
ing the  fire  of  the  upper  deck  guns  left  serviceable 
on  the  Richard,  the  two  9-pounders  on  the  quar- 
ter-deck. WTith  great  exertion  another  gun  was 
dragged  over  from  the  port  side,  Jones  lending  a 
hand  with  the  rest,  and  the  fire  of  the  three  was 
concentrated  upon  the  mainmast  of  the  Serapis. 

About  this  time,  between  half  after  nine  and  ten 
o'clock,  a  huge  black  shadow  came  darting  between 
the  moonlight  and  the  two  frigates  grinding  against 
each  other.  It  was  the  Alliance  once  more  enter- 
ing the  fray.  After  running  away  from  the  Richard 
toward  the  Scarborough  and  the  Pallas,  she  hov- 
ered about  until  she  found  that  the  former  had 
capitulated  after  a  gallant  defense  against  the  over- 
whelming superiority  of  the  French  ship.  Then 
Landais  headed  once  more  for  the  Richard  and  the 
Serapis.  To  reach  them,  he  was  forced  to  make  two 
tacks.  As  he  approached,  a  burning  anxiety  filled 


LANDAIS'   TREACHERY.  205 

the  minds  of  Jones  and  the  officers  who  were  left 
on  deck  with  him,  as  to  what  Landais  would  do. 
They  were  soon  enlightened. 

Sailing  across  the  bow  of  the  Serapis,  the  Alli- 
ance drew  past  the  stern  of  the  Richard,  and  when 
she  had  reached  a  position  slightly  on  the  quarter 
of  the  latter  ship,  she  poured  in  a  broadside.  There 
could  be  no  misapprehension  on  the  part  of  Landais 
as  to  which  ship  he  was  firing  into.  The  Richard 
was  a  black  ship  with  a  high  poop,  and  the  Serapis 
was  painted  a  creamy  white  with  much  lower  stern. 
The  moon  was  filling  the  sky  with  brilliant  light. 
Things  were  as  plain  as  if  it  were  daytime.  In  addi- 
tion to  all  this,  -Jones  had  caused  the  private  night 
signals  to  be  hung  upon  the  port  side  of  the  Richard. 
Shouts  and  cries  warned  the  Alliance  that  she  was 
firing  upon  her  own  people.  These  were  disre- 
garded. It  was  the  opinion  of  the  Americans  that 
the  English  had  taken  the  ship  and  were  endeavor- 
ing to  compass  the  destruction  of  the  Richard. 
They  could  not  otherwise  explain  the  astonishing 
action.  Sailing  slowly  along  the  starboard  side  of 
the  Richard,  the  Alliance  poured  in  another  broad- 
side. Then  she  circled  the  bows  of  the  American 
ship,  and  from  some  distance  away  raked  her  with 
a  discharge  of  grape  which  killed  and  wounded 
many,  including  Midshipman  Caswell,  in  charge  of 
the  forecastle.  It  was  just  before  ten  o'clock  when 
this  happened.  Some  of  the  shot  from  these  several 
broadsides  may  have  reached  the  Serapis  and  pos- 
sibly have  done  some  damage,  but  the  brunt  of  the 
severe  attack  fell  upon  the  Richard.  Her  men,  in 
the  face  of  this  awful  stab  in  the  back  from  a  friend, 


2o6  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

naturally  flinched  from  their  guns  and  ran  from 
their  stations. 

All  seemed  hopeless ;  but  Jones  was  still  left,  and 
while  he  was  alive  he  would  fight.  He  and  his  offi- 
cers drove  the  men  back  to  their  guns,  and  as  the 
Alliance  sailed  away,  for  the  time  being,  they  forgot 
her.  The  fight  went  on  ! 

It  is  greatly  to  the  credit  of  the  men  that  under 
such  circumstances  they  could  be  induced  to  con- 
tinue the  contest.  But  the  men  had  actually  grown 
reckless  of  consequences :  filled  with  the  lust  of 
battle,  the  brute  in  them  was  uppermost.  They 
fought  where  they  stood,  with  what  they  had. 
When  the  American  guns  were  silenced,  the  seamen 
struck  at  their  British  foes  over  their  silent  muzzles 
with  ramrods  and  sponges.  Some  endeavored  to 
subdue  the  flames  which  broke  out  on  every  side. 
Others  joined  the  English  prisoners  at  the  pumps. 
Many  ran  to  the  upper  deck  to  replace  the  deci- 
mated crews  of  the  Q-pounders.  Some  seized  the 
muskets  of  the  dead  French  soldiers  and  poured  in 
a  small-arm  fire.  They  had  grown  careless  of  the 
fire,  indifferent  to  the  progress  of  the  battle,  igno- 
rant of  the  results  of  the  action.  There  was  but 
one  spirit  among  them,  one  idea  possessed  them — 
to  fight  and  to  fight  on.  Both  crews  had  done  their 
best ;  both  had  fought  as  men  rarely  had  fought  be- 
fore; the  battle  was  still  undecided.  The  issue  lay 
between  Jones  and  Pearson.  What  was  it  to  be? 

Things  on  the  Richard  were  hopeless,  but  things 
on  the  Serapis  had  not  gone  much  better.  She,  too, 
was  on  fire — in  no  less  than  twelve  places  at  once. 
The  fearful  musketry  fire  from  the  quarter-deck  and 


THE   ACCIDENT   ON    THE   SERAPIS. 


207 


forecastle  of  the  Richard,  and  from  the  tops,  had 
practically  cleared  her  decks  of  all  but  Pearson.  By 
Jones'  orders  the  men  in  the  American  tops  had 
made  a  free  use  of  their  hand  grenades.  A  daring 
sailor,  sent  by  Midshipman  Fanning  from  the  main- 
top, ran  out  upon  the  main  yardarm,  which  hung 
over  the  after  hatch  of  the  Serapis,  and  began  to 
throw  grenades  down  the  hatchway.  On  the  lower 
deck  of  that  ship  a  large  pile  of  powder  cart- 
ridges had  been  allowed  to  accumulate,  for  which, 
on  account  of  the  silencing  of  a  large  number  of 
guns,  there  had  been  no  demand.  With  reckless 
improvidence,  in  their  haste,  the  powder  boys  con- 
tinued to  pile  up  these  unused  charges  on  the  deck 
of  the  ship  between  the  batteries.  Nobody  cau- 
tioned them,  perhaps  nobody  noticed  them  in  the 
heat  of  the  action.  At  last  a  hand  grenade  struck 
the  hatch  combing,  bounded  aft,  and  fell  into  the 
midst  of  the  pile  of  cartridges.  There  was  a  det- 
onating crash,  a  terrific  explosion,  which  absolutely 
silenced  the  roar  of  the  battle  for  a  moment.  The 
two  ships  rolled  and  rocked  from  the  shock  of  it. 
When  the  smoke  cleared  away,  the  decks  were  filled 
with  dead  and  dying.  Some  twenty-eight  men  were 
killed  or  desperately  wounded  by  the  discharge ; 
many  others  on  the  decks  were  stunned,  blinded, 
and  thrown  in  every  direction  by  the  concussion. 
Clothes  were  ripped  from  them,  and  many  of  them 
were  severely  burned.  Lieutenant  Stanhope,  in 
charge  of  that  gun  division,  his  clothing  on  fire, 
actually  leaped  into  the  sea  to  get  relief  from  his 
agony.  Afterward,  though  frightfully  burned,  he 
regained  his  station  and  fought  on. 


2o8  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

It  was  this  last  shock  that  determined  Pearson  to 
surrender.  He  had  beaten  his  antagonist  a  half 
dozen  times,  but  his  antagonist  did  not  seem  to 
realize  it.  In  the  face  of  such  implacable  determina- 
tion his  own  nerve  gave  way.  He  was  surrounded 
by  dead  and  dying,  no  human  soul  apparently  fit 
for  duty  on  his  decks  but  himself,  the  roar  of  his 
own  guns  silenced  by  this  terrific  explosion.  He 
had  fought  through  many  desperate  battles — never 
one  like  this.  The  other  American  frigate  might 
come  back.  His  consort  had  been  captured.  His 
nerve  was  broken.  He  turned  and  walked  aft  to 
the  flagstaff  raking  from  the  taffrail.  To  this  staff, 
with  his  own  hand  before  the  action,  he  had  nailed 
the  English  flag.*  With  the  same  hand  he  seized 
the  drooping  folds  of  bunting,  and  with  a  breaking 
heart  tore  it  from  the  staff. 

*  Some  authorities  imply  that  the  flag  had  been  nailed  to 
the  masthead,  and  that  it  was  necessary  for  Pearson  to  go 
aloft  in  default  of  any  one  else  in  order  to  strike  his  colors. 
Nailing  a  flag  to  the  masthead  is  a  figure  of  speech,  and  I 
doubt  the  actuality  of  the  performance.  On  the  other  hand, 
it  would  be  easy  and  natural  for  Pearson  to  have  nailed  the 
ensign  to  a  staff,  which  contemporary  prints  show  that  ships 
sometimes  carried  for  the  purpose  of  flying  the  colors.  In 
the  latter  case  it  would  be  easy  for  Pearson  to  tear  it  down  ; 
in  that  hypothesis  his  whole  action  then  and  subsequently  is 
understandable.  If  the  flag  had  been  nailed  to  the  mast- 
head it  is  extremely  unlikely  that  he  would  have  taken  the 
time,  trouble,  and  risk  of  going  aloft  to  tear  it  down  when 
by  a  simple  word  or  two  he  could  have  surrendered  his  ship. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

AFTER    THE    BATTLE — REMARKS    ON    THE    ACTION. 

"THEY  have  struck  their  flag!"  cried  Jones, 
who  had  witnessed  the  action.  "  Cease  firing !  " 
His  powerful  voice  rang  through  the  two  ships  with 
such  a  note  of  triumph  as  has  rarely  been  heard  in 
the  fought-over  confines  of  the  narrow  seas. 

As  the  little  scene  transpired  above,  from  the 
decks  beneath  them  came  the  roar  of  the  Serapis' 
guns.  She  had  resumed  her  fire.  Her  men,  too, 
were  of  heroic  breed !  A  British  ship  captain 
among  the  English  prisoners,  recovering  from  his 
panic  and  noting  the  desperate  condition  of  the 
Richard,  had  slipped  away  from  the  pumps,  and, 
eluding  the  observation  of  Dale  and  his  men,  had 
crawled  through  the  gaping  openings  in  the  sides 
of  the  Richard  and  the  Serapis  at  the  risk  of  his 
life — for  the  first  Englishman  who  saw  him  moved 
to  cut  him  down — and  had  announced  the  dread- 
ful plight  of  the  Richard  to  the  first  lieutenant  of 
the  Serapis,  who  had  succeeded  in  rallying  his 
men  and  forcing  them  once  more  back  to  the 
guns. 

But  the  cry  of  the  American  was  taken  up  by  the 
men  on  the  different  ships  until  Dale  came  bound- 
ing up  the  hatchway,  when  Jones  ordered  him  to 
15  209 


2io  COMMODORE   TAUL   JONES. 

board  the  English  frigate  and  take  possession.  Fol- 
lowed by  Midshipman  Mayrant  and  a  party  of 
boarders  with  drawn  swords,  Dale  leaped  up  on 
the  rail  of  the  Richard,  seized  the  end  of  the  main 
brace  pennant,  swung  himself  to  the  lower  Serapis, 
and  jumped  down  upon  her  quarter-deck.  As  May- 
rant  followed  he  was  met  by  an  English  seaman 
coming  from  the  waist,  pike  in  hand.  The  sailor, 
ignorant  of  or  disbelieving  the  surrender,  thrust 
violently  at  Mayrant,  inflicting  a  serious  wound  in 
the  thigh  before  he  could  be  stopped. 

Aft  upon  the  lee  side  of  the  deck,  Pearson  was 
standing  alone  with  bowed  head,  leaning  against 
the  rail,  the  flag  in  one  hand,  his  face  being  cov- 
ered by  the  other.  As  the  Americans  clambered 
over  the  rail  he  raised  his  head — his  hand  fell  to  the 
breast  of  his  coat.  There  was  the  look  of  defeat,  the 
saddest  aspect  humanity  can  bear,  upon  his  face. 
As  Dale  approached  him,  the  English  first  lieuten- 
ant, not  believing  that  the  ship  had  struck,  also  came 
bounding  from  below. 

"Have  you  struck?"  cried  Dale,  stepping  be- 
fore the  English  captain. 

"  Yes,  sir,"  was  the  reply.  The  anguish  of  the 
broken-hearted  sailor  was  apparent  in  his  face  and 
in  his  voice. 

"  Sir,  I  have  orders  to  send  you  on  board  the 
ship  alongside,"  replied  the  American,  . 

"  Very  good,  sir,"  answered  Pearson,  reaching 
for  his  sword  and  dropping  the  flag.  Just  at  this 
moment  his  subordinate  interrupted  them. 

"  Has  the  enemy  struck  to  you,  sir?  "  he  asked. 

"  No,  sir ;  on  the  contrary,  he  has  struck  to  us," 


211 

interposed  Dale.  But  the  English  lieutenant  re- 
fused to  believe  him. 

"  A  few  more  broadsides,  sir,  and  they  are  ours," 
he  persisted.  "  Their  prisoners  have  escaped. 
They  are  sinking !  " 

"  The  ship  has  struck,  sir,"  Dale  burst  out  hur- 
riedly, scarcely  giving  the  miserable  Pearson  an  op- 
portunity of  replying,  "  and  you  are  my  prisoner !  " 
Very  properly,  however,  the  English  officer  would 
take  such  news  from  no  one  but  his  own  captain. 

"  Sir !  "  he  cried  in  astonishment  to  Pearson, 
"  have  you  struck  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sir,"  at  last  answered  Pearson  reluctantly. 

There  was  a  deadly  little  pause. 

"  I  have  nothing  more  to  say,  sir,"  replied  the 
officer  at  last,  turning  to  go  below.  As  Dale  inter- 
posed, he  added,  ''  If  you  will  permit  me  to  go  be- 
low I  will  silence  the  firing  of  the  lower  deck  guns." 

"  No,  sir,"  answered  Dale,  "  you  will  accompany 
your  captain  on  board  our  ship  at  once,  by  the 
orders  of  Commodore  Jones.  Pass  the  word  to 
cease  firing.  Your  ship  has  surrendered !  " 

Dale  was  fearful  lest  the  lieutenant  should  go 
below  and,  refusing  to  accept  the  captain's  decision, 
attempt  to  resume  the  conflict.  So,  with  his  usual 
presence  of  mind,  he  sternly  insisted  upon  both 
officers  proceeding  on  board  the  Richard  at  once. 
In  the  face  of  the  swarming  crowd  of  the  Richard's 
men  on  the  Serapis'  quarter-deck  they  had,  of 
course,  no  option  but  to  obey.  By  the  aid  of  the 
dangling  ropes  they  climbed  up  to  the  rail  of  the 
Indiaman  and  thence  dropped  to  the  quarter-deck 
of  the  American  ship.  They  found  themselves  in 


212  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

the  presence  of  a  little  man  in  a  blue  uniform  which 
was  rent  and  torn  from  the  labors  he  had  undergone 
during  the  action.  He  was  hatless,  and  his  dark 
face  was  grimed  with  the  smoke  and  soil  of  battle. 
Blood  spattering  from  a  slight  wound  upon  his  fore- 
head was  coagulated  upon  his  cheek.  In  the  lurid 
illumination  of  the  fire  roaring  fiercely  forward, 
which,  with  the  moon's  pallid  irradiation,  threw  a 
ghastly  light  over  the  scene  of  horror,  he  looked  a 
hideous  spectacle — a  picture  of  demoniac  war. 
Nothing  but  the  fierce  black  eyes  still  burning  with 
the  awful  passions  of  the  past  few  hours  and  gleam- 
ing out  of  the  darkness,  with  the  exultant  light  of 
the  present  conquest  proclaimed  the  high  humanity 
of  the  man.  In  his  hand  he  held  a  drawn  sword. 
As  the  English  officers  stepped  upon  the  deck  he 
advanced  toward  them  and  bowed  gracefully. 

"  You  are "  began  Pearson  interrogatively. 

.  "  Commodore  John  Paul  Jones,  of  the  American 
Continental  squadron,  and  the  ship  Bon  Homme 
Richard,  at  your  service,  gentlemen ;  and  you 
are " 

"  Captain  Richard  Pearson,  of  His  Britannic 
Majesty's  ship  Serapis,"  responded  the  other,  bow- 
ing haughtily,  as  he  tendered  his  sword. 

Pearson  is  reputed  to  have  said  on  this  occa- 
sion, "  I  regret  at  being  compelled  to  strike  to  a 
man  who  has  fought  with  a  halter  around  his 
neck,"  or  words  to  that  effect.  He  did  not  utter 
the  remark  at  that  time,  according  to  Jones'  spe- 
cific statement  made  long  afterward.  The  sub- 
stance of  the  statement  was  used,  however,  in 
Pearson's  testimony  before  a  court  martial  subse- 


THE    MAGNANIMITY   OF   JONES.  213 

quently  for  the  loss  of  his  ship.  And  the  story 
probably  arose  from  that  circumstance.  Jones 
retained  the  sword,  which  was  customary  at  that 
period,  though  different  customs  obtained  later. 

As  he  received  the  proffered  sword  the  American 
replied,  with  a  magnanimity  as  great  as  his  valor: 

"  Sir,  you  have  fought  like  a  hero,  and  I  make 
no  doubt  that  your  sovereign  will  reward  you  in  the 
most  ample  manner." 

His  countrymen  have  ever  loved  Paul  Jones  for 
the  chivalrous  nobility  of  this  gracious  answer.  But 
he  wasted  no  further  time  in  discussion.  There  was 
too  much  to  be  done ;  not  a  moment  could  be  lost. 
It  was  half  after  ten  o'clock  at  night ;  the  battle 
was  over,  but  their  tasks  were  not  yet  completed. 
Both  ships  were  burning  furiously.  Their  decks 
were  filled  with  desperately  wounded  men,  whose 
agonies  demanded  immediate  attention.  Their 
screams  and  groans  rose  above  the  sound  of  the 
crackling,  roaring  flames.  With  but  half  a  single 
crew  Jones  had  to  man  both  ships,  put  out  the 
fires,  force  the  escaped  English  prisoners  back  into 
the  hold,  secure  the  additional  prisoners,  and  care 
for  the  wounded  on  the  Serapis.  From  the  actions 
of  the  Alliance,  too,  there  was  no  telling  what  Lan- 
dais  might  take  it  into  his  head  to  do.  He  had  fired 
twice  upon  them ;  he  might  do  it  again,  and  possibly 
it  might,  be  necessary  for  Jones  to  defend  the  flag- 
ship and  her  prize  from  a  more  determined  attack  by 
Landais  than  any  to  which  they  had  yet  been  sub- 
jected. 

He  turned  over  the  command  of  the  Serapis  to 
Dale,  sending  him,  as  usual,  a  generous  contingent 


214  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

for  a  prize  crew,  and  then,  as  a  preliminary  to  fur- 
ther work,  the  lashings  which  had  held  the  two  ves- 
sels in  their  death  grapple  were  cut  asunder.  The 
Richard  slowly  began  to  draw  past  her  beaten  an- 
tagonist. Dale  immediately  filled  his  head  sail  and 
shifted  his  helm  to  wear  ship  and  carry  out  his 
orders.  He  was  much  surprised  to  find  that  the 
Serapis  lay  still  and  did  not  obey  the  helm.  Fearing 
that  the  wheel  ropes  had  been  shot  away,  he  sent  a 
quartermaster  to  examine  them,  who  reported  that 
they  were  intact.  At  this  moment  the  master  of 
the  Serapis,  coming  aft  and  observing  Dale's  sur- 
prise, informed  him  that  the  English  ship  was  an- 
chored, which  was  the  first  intimation  of  that  fact 
the  Americans  had  received.  Dale  ordered  the 
cable  cut,  whereupon  the  ship  paid  off  and  began 
to  shove  through  the  water,  which  fortunately  still 
continued  calm.  As  he  spoke,  he  rose  from  the  bin- 
nacle upon  which  he  had  been  seated,  and  immedi- 
ately fell  prone  to  the  deck.  He  discovered  at  that 
moment,  by  his  inability  to  stand,  that  he  had  been 
severely  wounded  in  the  leg  by  a  splinter,  a  thing 
which  he  had  not  noticed  in  the  heat  of  the  action. 
As  he  lay  upon  the  deck,  Mr.  Henry  Lunt,  the 
second  lieutenant  of  the  Richard,  came  on  board  the 
Serapis  at  this  juncture.  This  officer  had  been  dis- 
patched in  the  afternoon  to  pursue  the  brigantine, 
and  had  caused  his  boat's  crew  to  lay  on  their  oars 
at  a  safe  distance  from  the  two  ships  during  the 
whole  of  the  desperate  battle,  because,  as  he  states, 
he  "  thought  it  not  prudent  to  go  alongside  in  time 
of  action."  Mr.  Lunt  no  doubt  lived  to  regret  the 
pusillanimous  "  prudence  "  of  his  conduct  on  this 


THE    RICHARD'S    DESPERATE  CONDITION. 


215 


occasion,  although,  if  that  conduct  be  an  index  to 
his  character,  his  services  would  not  be  of  great 
value  in  the  battle.  Dale  turned  over  the  command 
of  the  Serapis  to  Lunt,  and  was  assisted  on  board 
the  Richard. 

As  the  Richard  cleared  the  Serapis,  the  tottering 
mainmast  of  that  ship,  which  had  been  subjected 
to  a  continual  battering  from  the  Q-pounders  and 
which  had  only  been  sustained  by  the  interlocking 
yards,  came  crashing  down,  just  above  the  deck, 
carrying  with  it  the  mizzen  topmast,  doing  much 
damage  as  it  fell,  and  adding  an  element  of  ship- 
wreck to  the  other  evidence  of  disaster.  The  frigate 
was  also  on  fire,  and  the  flames,  unchecked  in  the 
confusion  of  the  surrender,  were  gaining  great 
headway.  Moved  by  a  sense  of  their  common  peril 
and  necessity,  the  English  crew  joined  with  the 
Americans  in  clearing  away  the  wreck  and  subduing 
the  fire.  They  did  not  effect  this  without  a  hard 
struggle,  but  they  finally  succeeded  in  saving  the 
ship  and  following  the  Richard. 

The  situation  on  that  ship  was  precarious  in  the 
extreme.  She  was  very  low  in  the  water  and  leak- 
ing like  a  sieve.  She  was  still  on  fire  in  several 
places,  and  the  flames  were  blazing  more  furiously 
than  ever.  There  was  not  a  minute's  respite  allowed 
her  crew.  Having  conquered  the  English,  they 
turned  to  fight  the  fire  and  water.  The  prisoners 
were  forced  to  continue  their  exhausting  toil  at  the 
pumps.  Pressing  every  man  of  the  crew  into  serv- 
ice, including  the  English  officers,  except  those  so 
badly  wounded  as  to  be  incapable  of  anything,  Jones 
and  his  men  turned  their  attention  to  the  fire.  They 


2i6  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

had  a  hard  struggle  to  get  it  under  control.  At  one 
time  the  flames  approached  so  near  to  the  magazine 
that,  fearful  lest  they  should  be  blown  up,  Jones 
caused  the  powder  to  be  removed  and  stowed  upon 
the  deck  preparatory  to  throwing  it  overboard. 
For  some  time  they  despaired  of  saving  the  ship. 
Toward  daybreak,  however,  they  managed  to  extin- 
guish the  flames  and  were  saved  that  danger.  In 
the  morning  a  careful  inspection  of  the  ship  was 
made.  A  fearful  situation  was  revealed.  She  had 
been  torn  to  pieces.  It  was  hardly  safe  for  the  offi- 
cers and  men  to  remain  on  the  after  part  of  the  ship. 
Everything  that  supported  the  upper  deck  except  a 
few  stanchions  had  been  torn  away.  Her  rotten 
timbers  had  offered  no  resistance  to  the  Serapis' 
searching  shot.  Jones  writes  : 

"  With  respect  to  the  situation  of  the  Bon 
Homme  Richard,  the  rudder  was  cut  entirely  off, 
the  stern  frame  and  the  transoms  were  almost  en- 
tirely cut  away ;  the  timbers,  by  the  lower  deck  espe- 
cially, from  the  mainmast  to  the  stern,  being  greatly 
decayed  with  age,  were  mangled  beyond  my  power 
of  description,  and  a  person  must  have  been  an  eye- 
witness to  form  a  just  idea  of  the  tremendous  scene 
of  carnage,  wreck,  and  ruin  that  everywhere  ap- 
peared. Humanity  can  not.but  recoil  from  the  pros- 
pect of  such  finished  horror,  and  lament  that  war 
should  produce  such  fatal  consequences." 

It  was  evident  that  nothing  less  than  a  miracle 
could  keep  her  afloat  even  in  the  calmest  weather. 
With  a  perfectly  natural  feeling  Jones  determined  to 
try  it. 


THE    RICHARD    IS   ABANDONED. 


A  large  detail  from  the  Pallas  was  set  to  work 
pumping  her  out.  Every  effort,  meanwhile,  was 
made  to  patch  her  up  so  that  she  could  be  brought 
into  the  harbor.  The  effort^  were  in  vain.  Owing 
to  the  decayed  condition  of  her  timbers,  even  the 
poor  remnants  of  her  frames  that  were  left  standing 
aft  could  not  bear  the  slightest  repairing.  She  set- 
tled lower  and  lower  in  the  water,  until,  having  been 
surveyed  by  the  carpenters  and  various  men  of  ex- 
perience, including  Captain  de  Cottineau,  about  five 
o'clock  in  the  evening  it  was  determined  to  abandon 
her.  It  was  time.  She  threatened  to  sink  at  any 
moment — would  surely  have  sunk,  indeed,  if  the 
pumps  had  stopped.  She  was  filled  with  helpless 
wounded  and  prisoners.  They  had  to  be  taken  off 
before  she  went  down. 

During  the  night  everybody  worked  desperately 
transferring  the  wounded  to  the  other  ships,  fur- 
ther details  of  men  from  the  Pallas  being  told  off  to 
man  the  frigate  and  keep  her  afloat.  Such  was  the 
haste  with  which  they  worked  that  they  barely  suc- 
ceeded in  transhipping  the  last  of  the  wounded  just 
before  daybreak  on  the  25th.  Although  the  sea 
fortunately  continued  smooth,  the  poor  wounded 
suffered  frightfully  from  the  rough  handling  neces- 
sitated by  the  rapid  transfer. 

The  removal  of  the  prisoners  from  the  Richard 
was  now  begun ;  naturally,  these  men,  expecting  the 
ship  to  sink  at  any  moment,  were  frantic  with  terror. 
They  had  only  been  kept  down  by  the  most  rigor- 
ous measures.  As  day  broke,  the  light  revealed  to 
them  the  nearness  of  the  approaching  end  of  the 
ship.  They  also  realized  that  they  greatly  outnum- 


2i8  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

befed  the  Americans  remaining  on  the  Richard. 
There  was  a  hurried  consultation  among  them :  a 
quick  rush,  and  they  made  a  desperate  attempt  to 
take  the  ship.  Some  endeavored  to  overpower 
the  Americans,  others  ran  to  the  'braces  and  wheel 
and  got  the  head  of  the  ship  toward  the  land.  A 
brief  struggle  ensued.  The  Americans  were  all 
heavily  armed,  the  English  had  few  weapons,  and 
after  two  of  them  had  been  shot  dead,  many 
wounded,  and  others  thrown  overboard,  they  were 
subdued  once  more  and  the  ship  regained.  In  the 
confusion  some  thirteen  of  them  got  possession  of 
a  boat  and  escaped  in  the  gray  of  the  morning  to  the 
shore.  By  close,  quick  work  during  the  early  morn- 
ing all  the  men  alive,  prisoners  and  crew,  were  em- 
barked in  the  boats  of  the  squadron  before  the 
Richard  finally  disappeared.*  At  ten  o'clock  in  the 
morning  of  the  25th  she  plunged  forward  and  went 
down  bow  foremost.  The  great  battle  flag  under 
which  she  had  been  fought,  which  had  been  shot 
away  during  the  action,  had  been  picked  up  and  re- 
set. It  fluttered  above  her  as  she  slowly  sank  be- 
neath the  sea.f 

So  filled  had  been  the  busy  hours,  and  so  many 
had  been  the  demands  made  upon  him  in  every 
direction,  that  Jones,  ever  careless  of  himself  in 
others'  needs,  lost  all  of  his  personal  wardrobe, 
papers,  and  other  property.  They  went  down  with 
the  ship.  From  the  deck  of  the  Serapis,  Jones,  with 

*  It  has  been  incorrectly  stated  that  many  wounded  and 
prisoners  were  carried  down  with  the  ship.  Jones,  who  was 
in  a  position  to  know,  asserts  the  contrary. 

f  See  Appendix  No.  III. 


THE   SINKING   OF   THE    RICHARD.  219 

longing  eyes  and  mingled  feelings,  watched  the 
great  old  Indiaman,  which  had  earned  everlasting 
immortality  because  for  three  brief  hours  he  and  his 
men  had  battled  upon  her  wornout  decks,  sink  be- 
neath the  sea.  Most  of  those  who  had  given  their 
lives  in  defense  of  her  in  the  battle  lay  still  and 
silent  upon  her  decks.  There  had  been  no  time  to 
spare  to  the  dead.  Like  the  Vikings  of  old,  they 
found  their  coffin  in  Her  riven  sides,  and  sleep  to-day 
in  the  quiet  of  the  great  deep  on  the  scene  of  their 
glory.  During  the  interval  after  the  action,  a  jury 
rig  had  been  improvised  on  the  Serapis,  which  had 
not  been  severely  cut  up  below  by  the  light  guns 
of  the  Richard,  and  was  therefore  entirely  sea- 
worthy, and  the  squadron  bore  away  by  Jones'  or- 
ders for  Dunkirk,  France. 

Before  we  pass  to  a  consideration  of  the  subse- 
quent movements  of  the  squadron,  a  further  com- 
parison between  the  Richard  and  the  Serapis,  with 
some  statement  of  the  losses  sustained  and  the  vari- 
ous factors  which  were  calculated  to  bring  about  the 
end,  wall  be  in  order,  and  will  reveal  much  that  is 
interesting.  The  accounts  of  the  losses  upon  the 
two  ships  widely  differ.  Jones  reported  for  the  Rich- 
ard forty-nine  killed  and  sixty-seven  wounded  ;  total, 
one  hundred  and  sixteen  out  of  three  hundred ;  but 
the  number  is  confessedly  incomplete.  Pearson,  for 
the  Serapis,  reported  the  same  number  of  killed  and 
sixty-eight  wounded,  out  of  a  crew  of  three  hundred 
and  twenty  ;  but  it  is  highly  probable  that  the  loss  in 
both  cases  was  much  greater.  The  records,  as  we 
have  seen,  were  badly  kept  on  the  Richard,  and 
most  of  them  were  lost  when  the  ship  went  do\vn. 


220  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

The  books  of  the  Serapis  seemed  to  have  fared 
equally  ill  in  the  confusion.  The  crews  of  both 
ships  were  scattered  throughout  the  several  ships  of 
the  American  squadron,  and  accurate  information 
was  practically  unobtainable.  Jones,  who  was  in  a 
better  position  than  Pearson  for  ascertaining  the 
facts,  reports  the  loss  of  the  Serapis  as  over  two 
hundred  men,  which  is  probably  nearly  correct,  and 
the  loss  of  the  Richard  was  pi*obably  not  far  from 
one  hundred  and  fifty  men.  The  Countess  of  Scar- 
borough lost  four  killed  and  twenty  wounded.  The 
loss  of  the  Pallas  was  slight,  and  that  of  the  Alliance 
and  Vengeance  nothing. 

However  this  may  be,  the  battle  was  one  of  the 
most  sanguinary  and  desperate  ever  fought  upon 
the  sea.  It  was  unique  in  that  the  beaten  ship, 
which  was  finally  sunk  by  the  guns  of  her  antago- 
nist, actually  compelled  that  antagonist  to  surrender. 
It  was  remarkable  for  the  heroism  manifested  by 
both  crews.  It  is  invidious,  perhaps,  to  make  a  com- 
parison on  that  score,  yet,  if  the  contrast  can  be 
legitimately  drawn,  the  result  is  decidedly  in  favor 
of  the  Richard's  men,  for  they  had  not  only  the 
enemy  to  occupy  their  attention,  but  they  sustained 
and  did  not  succumb  to  the  treacherous  attack  of  the 
Alliance  in  the  rear.  The  men  of  the  Serapis  were, 
of  course,  disheartened  and  their  nerves  shattered  by 
the  explosion  which  occurred  at  the  close  of  the 
action,  but  a  similar  and  equally  dreadful  misfortune 
had  occurred  at  the  commencement  of  the  engage- 
ment on  the  Richard,  in  the  blowing  up  of  the  two 
i8-pounders.  In  ninety-nine  cases  out  of  a  hun- 
dred either  of  these  two  terrible  incidents  would 


REMARKS   ON   THE   ACTION.  221 

have  caused  a  prompt  surrender  of  the  ship  •  on 
which  they  occurred ;  but  the  Richard's  men  rallied 
from  the  former,  and  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that 
the  Serapis'  men  did  the  like  from  the  latter,  for 
they  had  recommenced  the  fire  of  their  guns  just 
as  Pearson  hauled  down  his  flag. 

The  officers  on  the  two  ships  appear  to  have 
done  their  whole  duty,  and  the  difference,  as  I  have 
said,  lay  in  the  relative  qualities  of  the  two  captains. 
Jones  could  not  be  beaten,  Pearson  could.  When 
humanity  enters  into  a  conflict  with  a  man  like 
Jones,  it  must  make  up  its  mind  to  eventually  dis- 
continue the  fight  or  else  remove  £he  -man.  For- 
tunately, Jones,  though  slightly  wounded,  was  not 
removed  ;  therefore  Pearson  had  to  surrender.  Next 
to  Jones,  the  most  unique  personality  which  was 
produced  by  the  action  was  Richard  Dale.  I  do 
not  refer  to  his  personal  courage — he  was  no  braver 
than  Pearson ;  neither  was  Jones,  for  that  matter ; 
in  fact,  the  bravery  of  all  three  was  of  the  highest 
order — but  to  his  astonishing  presence  of  mind 
and  resource  at  that  crucial  moment  which  was  the 
third  principal  incident  of  the  battle,  when  the  Eng- 
lish prisoners  were  released.  The  more  one  thinks 
of  the  prompt,  ready  way  in  which  he  cajoled,  com- 
manded, and  coerced  these  prisoners  into  manning 
the  pumps  so  that  his  own  men  could  continue  the 
battle,  the  result  of  which,  if  they  succeeded  would 
be  to  retain  the  English  still  as  prisoners,  the  more 
one  marvels  at  it.  The  fame  of  Dale  has  been 
somewhat  obscured  in  the  greater  fame  of  Jones, 
but  he  deserves  the  very  highest  praise  for  his 
astonishing  action.  And  in  every  possible  public 


222  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES.  • 

way  Jones  freely  accorded  the  greatest  credit  to 
him. 

There  is  one  other  fact  in  connection  with  the 
battle  which  must  be  mentioned.  The  English  have 
always  claimed  that  the  presence  of  the  Alliance  de- 
cided Pearson  to  surrender.  In  justice,  I  have  no 
doubt  that  it  did  exercise  a  moral  influence  upon  the 
English  captain.  In  the  confusion  of  the  fight,  what 
damage,  whether  little  or  great,  had  been  done  to 
the  Serapis  by  the  fire  of  the  Alliance  could  not  be 
definitely  ascertained.  Again,  it  would  never  enter 
the  head  of  an  ordinary  commander  that  the  Alli- 
ance was  deliberately  firing  into  her  consort.  So 
far  as  can  be  determined  now,  no  damage  worthy  of 
account  had  been  done  to  the  English  ship  by  the 
Alliance ;  but  Pearson  knew  she  was  there,  and  he 
had  a  right  to  believe  that  she  would  return  at  any 
time.  When  she  returned,  if  she  should  take  posi- 
tion on  the  starboard  side  of  the  Serapis,  the  unen- 
gaged side,  he  would  have  to  strike  at  once. 

Something  of  this  sort  may  have  been  in  his 
mind,  and  it  would  undoubtedly  contribute  to  de- 
cide him  to  surrender ;  but,  admitting  all  this,  he 
should  have  delayed  the  formal  surrender  until  the 
possible  contingency  had  developed  into  a  reality, 
until  he  actually  saw  the  Alliance  alongside  of  him 
again.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  he  did  not  strike  until 
about  thirty  minutes  after  the  Alliance  had  fired  the 
last  broadside  and  sailed  away.  The  American 
frigate  was  out  of  gunshot  when  he  surrendered, 
and  going  farther  from  him  with  every  minute. 

Imagine  what  Jones  would  have  done  under 
similar  circumstances !  Indeed,  we  do  not  have  to 


A    FAIR    DEFEAT.  223 

imagine  what  he  would  have  done,  for  as  it  hap- 
pened the  Alliance  had  on  two  occasions  fired  full 
upon  him,  and  he  was  actually  in  the  dilemma  which 
Pearson  imagined  he  might  fall  into,  and  yet  it  only 
re-enforced  his  already  resolute  determination  to 
continue  the  fight  more  fiercely  than  ever.  A  nice 
point  this :  with  Pearson  the  Alliance  was  an  im- 
aginary danger,  with  Jones  a  real  one!  While  the 
presence  of  the  Alliance,  therefore,  explains  in  a 
measure  Pearson's  surrender,  it  does  not  enhance 
his  reputation  for  dogged  determination.  The  un- 
heard-of resistance  which  he  had  met  from  the  Rich- 
ard, the  persistence  with  which  the  attack  was  car- 
ried on,  the  apparently  utterly  unconquerable  na- 
ture of  his  antagonist — of  whose  difficulties  on  the 
Richard  he  was  not  aware,  for  there  was  no  evidence 
of  faltering  in  the  battle — the  frightful  attack  he  had 
received,  and  his  isolation  upon  the  deck  filled  with 
dead  and  dying  men,  broke  his  own  power  of  resist- 
ance. There  were  two  things  beaten  on  that  day — 
the  Richard  and  Pearson ;  one  might  almost  say 
three  things :  both  ships  and  the  captain  of  one.  It 
is  generally  admitted,  even  by  the  English,  that  the 
result  would  have  been  the  same  if  the  Alliance  had 
never  appeared  on  the  scene.  No,  it  was  a  fair  and 
square  stand-up  fight,  and  a  fair  and  square  defeat.* 


*  Thackeray  told  an  American  friend  that  the  account  of 
the  amazing  capture  of  the  Serapis  by  Paul  Jones  was  one 
of  the  most  extraordinary  stories  in  naval  annals,  and  Mrs. 
Ritchie,  writing  of  her  father's  last  days,  says  :  "  Sometimes 
we  found  him  .in  great  spirits,  as  when  he  had  been  reading 
about  the  famous  fight  of  the  Serapis,  a  stirring  thing  in- 
deed."— EDITOR. 


224  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

The  conduct  of  Landais  has  presented  a  prob- 
lem difficult  of  solution.  It  has  been  surmised,  and 
upon  the  warrant  of  his  own  statement,  that  he 
would  have  thought  it  no  harm  if  the  Richard  had 
struck  to  the  Serapis,  and  he  could  have  had  the 
glory  of  recapturing  her  and  then  forcing  the  sur- 
render of  the  English  frigate ;  but  whether  he  really 
meant  by  his  dastardly  conduct  to  compel  this  situa- 
tion from  which  he  trusted  he  could  reap  so  much 
honor,  is  another  story.  Most  of  the  historians 
have  been  unable  to  see  anything  in  his  actions 
but  jealousy  and  treachery.  The  most  eminent 
critic,  however,  who  has  treated  of  the  battle  * 
has  thought  his  actions  arose  from  an  incapacity, 
coupled  with  a  timidity  amounting  to  cowardice, 
which  utterly  blinded  his  judgment ;  that  he  was  de- 
sirous of  doing  something,  and  felt  it  incumbent 
upon  him  to  take  some  part  in  the  action  and  that  his 
firing  into  the  Richard  was  due  to  incompetency 
rather  than  to  anything  else.  With  all  deference, 
it  is  difficult  to  agree  with  this  proposition.  The 
officers  of  the  squadron,  in  a  paper  which  wras  pre- 
pared less  than  a  month  after  the  action,  bore  con- 
clusive testimony  that  while  it  is  true  that  he  was 
an  incapable  coward,  he  was,  in  addition,  either  a 
jealous  traitor,  or — and  this  is  the  only  other 
supposition  which  will  account  for  his  action — 
that  he  was  irresponsible,  in  short,  insane.  This 
is  a  conclusion  to  which  his  own  officers  after- 


*  Captain  A.  T.  Mahan,  U.  S.  N.  (retired).  The  greatest 
authority,  living  or  dead,  on  warfare  on  the  sea,  especially 
from  the  philosophical  standpoint. 


WAS   THE   RICHARD   RAKED?  225 

ward  arrived,  and  which  his  subsequent  career 
seems  to  bear  out.  At  any  rate,  this  is  the  most 
charitable  explanation  of  his  conduct  which  can  be 
adopted.  If  he  had  been  simply  cowardly,  he  could 
have  done  some  service  by  attacking  the  unprotected 
convoy,  which  was  entirely  at  his  mercy,  and  among 
which  he  could  have  easily  taken  some  valuable 
prizes.  It  is  stated  to  their  credit  that  some  of  the 
officers  of  the  Alliance  remonstrated  with  Landais, 
and  pointed  out  to  him  that  he  was  attacking  the 
wrong  ship,  and  that  some  of  his  men  refused  to 
obey  his  orders  to  fire. 

There  is  but  one  other  circumstance  to  which  it 
is  necessary  to  refer.  All  the  plans  of  the  battle 
which  are  extant,  and  all  the  descriptions  which 
have  been  made,  from  Cooper  to  Maclay  and  Spears, 
show  that  the  Richard  passed  ahead  of  the  Serapis 
and  was  raked ;  and  that  the  Serapis  then  ranged 
alongside  to  windward  of  the  American  and  pres- 
ently succeeded  in  crossing  the  Richard's  bow  and 
raking  her  a  second  time.  Richard  Dale's  account, 
in  Sherburne's  Life  of  Paul  Jones,  written  some 
forty-six  years  after  the  action,  seems  to  bear  out  this 
idea.  Jones  himself,  whose  report  is  condensed  and 
unfortunately  wanting  in  detail,  says :  "  Every  meth- 
od was  practiced  on  both  sides  to  gain  an  advantage 
and  rake  each  other,  and  I  must  confess  that  the 
enemy's  ship,  being  much  more  manageable  than 
the  Bon  Homme  Richard,  gained  thereby  several 
times  an  advantageous  situation,  in  spite  of  my  best 
endeavors  to  prevent  it." 

Nathaniel  Fanning,  midshipman  of  the  maintop 

in  the  action,  stated  in  his  narrative,  published  in 
16 


226  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

1806,  twenty-seven  years  later,  that  the  Serapis 
raked  the  Richard  several  times. 

Notwithstanding  this  weight  of  apparent  testi- 
mony, I  must  agree  with  Captain  Mahan  in  his 
conclusion  that  the  Serapis,  until  the  ships  were 
lashed  together,  engaged  the  Richard  with  her  port 
battery  only,  and  that  the  plan  as  given  above  is  cor- 
rect. In  the  first  place,  Jones'  statement  is  too  in- 
definite to  base  a  conclusion  upon  unless  clearly 
corroborated  by  other  evidence.  Dale,  being  in 
the  batteries,  where  he  could  hardly  see  the  ma- 
neuvers, and  writing  from  memory  after  a  lapse 
of  many  years,  may  well  have  been  mistaken. 
Fanning's  narrative  is  contradicted  by  the  articles 
which  he  signed  concerning  the  conduct  of  Lan- 
dais,  in  October,  1779,  in  the  Texel,  so  that  his 
earliest  statement  is  at  variance  with  his  final 
recollection,  and  Fanning  is  not  very  reliable  at 
best. 

However,  we  might  accept  the  statements  of 
these  men  as  decisive  were  it  not  for  the  fact  that 
Pearson,  whose  report  is  very  explicit  indeed, 
makes  no  claim  whatever  to  having  succeeded  in 
raking  the  Richard,  though  it  would  be  so  greatly 
to  his  credit  if  he  had  done  so  that  it  is  hardly 
probable  he  would  fail  to  state  it.  His  account  of 
the  battle  accords  with  the  plan  of  the  present  work. 
Again,  when  the  Serapis  engaged  the  Richard  in 
the  final  grapple,  she  had  to  blow  off  her  starboard 
port  shutters,  which  were  therefore  tightly  closed. 
If  she  had  been  engaged  to  starboard  (which  would 
necessarily  follow  if  she  had  been  on  the  port  side 
of  the  Richard  at  any  time),  the  ports  would  have 


WAS   THE   RICHARD   RAKED?  22/ 

been  opened.*  This  is  not  absolutely  conclusive,  be- 
cause, of  course,  it  would  be  possible  that  the  ports 
might  have  been  closed  when  the  men  were  shifted 
to  the  other  battery,  but  in  the  heat  of  the  action 
such  a  measure  would  be  so  improbable  as  to  be 
worthy  of  little  consideration.  But  the  most  con- 
clusive testimony  to  the  fact  that  the  Serapis  was 
not  on  the  port  side  of  the  Richard  at  any  time  is 
found  in  the  charges  which  were  signed  by  the  offi- 
cers concerning  the  conduct  of  Landais.  Article 
19  reads :  "  As  the  most  dangerous  shot  which  the 
Bon  Homme  Richard  received  under  the  water  were 
under  the  larboard  bow  and  quarter,  they  must 
have  come  from  the  Alliance,  for  the  Serapis  was 
on  the  other  side."  f 

Captain  Mahan  well  sums  it  up :  "  As  Landais' 
honor,  if  not  his  life,  was  at  stake  in  these  charges, 
it  is  not  to  be  supposed  that  six  officers  (besides  two 
French  marine  officers),  four  of  whom  were  spe- 
cially well  situated  for  seeing,  would  have  made  this 
statement  if  the  Serapis  had  at  any  time  been  in 
position  to  fire  those  shots." 

This  consideration,  therefore,  seems  to  settle  the 
question.  Again,  the  maneuvers  as  they  have  been 
described  in  this  volume  are  the  simple  and  natural 
evolutions  which,  under  the  existing  conditions  of 
wind  and  weather  and  the  relative  positions  of  the 
two  ships,  would  have  been  in  all  human  probabil- 

*  She  could  only  have  engaged  to  starboard  by  crossing 
the  path  of  the  Richard,  in  which  event  she  would  have  raked 
her,  of  course,  with  her  port  battery,  and  then  have  brought 
her  starboard  battery  in  play  when  she  got  alongside  again. 

f  Italics  mine. 


228  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

ity  carried  out.  The  attempt  to  put  the  ships  in 
the  different  positions  of  the  commonly  accepted 
plans  involves  a  series  of  highly  complicated  and 
unnecessary  evolutions  (scarcely  possible,  in  fact,  in 
the  very  light  breeze),  which  no  commander  would 
be  apt  to  attempt  in  the  heat  of  action  unless  most 
serious  contingencies  rendered  them  inevitable. 


CHAPTER  XII. 

UPHOLDING   AMERICAN    HONOR   IN    THE   TEXEL, 

AFTER  the  sinking  of  the  Richard,  Jones  turned 
his  attention  to  the  squadron.  Those  ships  which 
had  been  in  action  were  now  ready  for  sea,  so  far, 
at  least,  as  it  was  possible  to  make  them,  and  it 
was  necessary  to  make  a  safe  port  as  soon  as  pos- 
sible. He  had  now  some  five  hundred  English 
prisoners,  including  Captains  Pearson  and  Piercy 
and  their  officers,  in  his  possession.  These  equaled 
all  the  American  seamen  held  captive  by  the  Eng- 
lish, and,  with  one  of  the  main  objects  of  his  ex^ 
pedition  in  view,  Jones  earnestly  desired  to  make  a 
French  port,  in  which  case  his  prizes  would  be 
secure  and  he  would  be  able  to  effect  a  proper  ex- 
change of  prisoners.  But  the  original  destination 
of  the  squadron  had  been  the  Texel.  It  is  evident 
that  in  sending  the  squadron  into  the  Zuyder  Zee 
Franklin  shrewdly  contemplated  the  possibility  of 
so  compromising  Holland  by  the  presence  of  the 
ships  as  to  force  a  recognition  from  that  important 
maritime  and  commercial  power  of  the  belligerency 
of  the  United  States.  This  was  the  real  purport  of 
the  orders.  There  \vas  an  ostensible  reason,  how- 
ever, in  the  presence  of  a  large  fleet  of  merchant  ves- 
sels in  the  Texel,  which  would  be  ready  for  sailing 

.  229 


230  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

for  France  in  October,  and  Jones'  squadron  could 
give  them  a  safe  convoy. 

The  events  of  the  cruise  had  brought  about  a 
somewhat  different  situation  from  that  contem- 
plated in  the  original  orders,  and  Jones  was  un- 
doubtedly within  his  rights  in  determining  to 
enter  Dunkirk,  the  most  available  French  port ; 
in  which  event  the  difficulties  which  afterward 
arose  concerning  the  exchange  of  prisoners  and 
the  disposition  of  the  prizes  would  never  have  pre- 
sented themselves.  In  the  latter  case,  however,  the 
hand  of  Holland  might  not  have  been  so  promptly 
forced,  and  the  recognition  accorded  this  country 
would  probably  have  been  much  longer  delayed,  al- 
though in  the  end  it  would  have  come.  But  the 
balance  of  advantage  lay  with  Jones'  choice  of  Dun- 
kirk. 

For  a  week  the  ships  beat  up  against  contrary 
winds,  endeavoring  to  make  that  port.  Their  posi- 
tion was  most  precarious.  Sixteen  sail,  including 
several  ships  of  the  line,  were  seeking  the  audacious 
invaders,  and  they  were  likely  to  overhaul  them  at 
any  time.  The  Frenchmen  naturally  grew  nervous 
over  the  prospect.  Finally,  the  captains,  who  had 
been  remonstrating  daily  with  Jones,  refused  to 
obey  his  orders  any  longer ;  and,  the  wind  continu- 
ing unfavorable  for  France,  they  actually  deserted 
the  Serapis,  running  off  to  leeward  in  a  mass  and 
heading  for  the  Texel. 

The  officers  of  the  American  squadron  were 
fully  aware  of  the  assigned  destination,  although 
the  deep  reasons  for  Franklin's  subtle  policy  had 
probably  not  been  communicated  to  them.  In.view 


THE    TEXEL. 


231 


of  this  unprecedented  situation,  which  may  be  traced 
distinctly  to  the  concordat,  there  was  nothing  left  to 
Jones  but  to  swallow  the  affront  as  best  he  might, 
and  follow  his  unruly  squadron. 

Landais  had  not  yet  been  deposed  from  the  com- 
mand of  the  Alliance,  because  it  would  have  prob- 
ably required  force  to  arrest  him  on  the  deck  of 
his  own  ship,  and  an  internecine  conflict  might  have 
been  precipitated  in  his  command.  On  the  3d  of 
October,  having  made  a  quick  run  of  it,  the  squad- 
ron entered  the  Texel. 

From  the  mainland  of  the  Dutch  Republic,  now 
the  Kingdom  of  the  Netherlands,  the  state  of  North 
Holland  thrusts  a  bold  wedge  of  land  far  to  the 
northward,  between  the  foaming  surges  of  the  Ger- 
man Ocean  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  tempest-tossed 
waters  of  the  Zuyder  Zee  on  the  other.  Opposite 
the  present  mighty  fortifications  of  Helder,  justly 
considered  the  Gibraltar  of  the  North,  which  ter- 
minate the  peninsula,  lies  a  deep  and  splendid  chan- 
nel, bounded  on  the  north  side  by  the  island  of 
Texel,  from  which  the  famous  passage  gets  its 
name.  Through  this  ocean  gateway,  from  time  im- 
memorial, a  splendid  procession  of  gallant  ships  and 
hardy  men  have  gone  forth  to  discover  new  worlds, 
to  found  new  countries,  to  open  up  new  avenues  of 
trade  with  distant  empires,  and  to  uphold  the  honor 
of  the  Orange  flag  in  desperate  battles  on  the  sea. 
Through  the  pass  sailed  the  first  great  Christian  for- 
eign missionary  expedition  of  modern  times,  when 
in  1624  the  Dutchmen  carried  the  Gospel  to  the  dis- 
tant island  of  Formosa,  the  beautiful. 

Brederode  and  the   wild   beggars   of  the  sea; 


232  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

Tromp,  De  Ruyter,  van  Heemskerk,  De  Winter, 
leading  their  fleets  to  battles  which  made  their 
names  famous,  had  plowed  through  the  deep  chan- 
nel with  their  lumbering  keels.  Of  smaller  ships 
from  these  familiar  shores,  the  little  Half  Moon,  of 
Henry  Hudson,  and  the  pilgrim-laden  Mayflower 
had  taken  their  departure.  But  no  bolder  officer  nor 
better  seaman  had  ever  made  the  passage  than  the 
little  man  on  the  deck  of  the  battered  Serapis  on 
that  raw  October  morning.  It  is  a  rather  interest- 
ing coincidence  that  among  the  prizes  of  this  cruise 
was  one  which  bore  the  name  of  the  Mayflower. 

As  the  cables  of  the  ships  tore  through  the 
hawse  pipes  when  they  dropped  anchor,  Jones  may 
have  imagined  that  his  troubles  were  over.  As  a 
matter  of  fact,  they  had  just  begun,  and  his  stay 
in  the  Texel  was  not  the  least  arduous  nor  the 
least  brilliant  period  in  his  life.  His  conduct  in  the 
trying  circumstances  in  which  he  found  himself  was 
beyond  reproach.  The  instant  that  he  appeared, 
Sir  Joseph  Yorke,  the  able  and  influential  Minister 
of  England  at  The  Hague,  demanded  that  the 
States-General  deliver  the  Serapis  and  the  Scar- 
borough to  him  and  compel  the  return  of  the  Eng- 
lish prisoners  held  by  Jones,  and  that  the  American 
"  Pirate  "  should  be  ordered  to  leave  the  Texel  im- 
mediately, which  would,  of  course,  result  in  the  cer- 
tain capture  of  his  ships,  for  the  English  pursuing 
squadron  appeared  off  the  mouth  of  the  channel 
almost  immediately  after  Jones.'  entrance. 

Sir  Joseph  made  the  point — and  it  was  a  pretty 
one — that  by  the  terms  of  past  treaties  prizes  taken 
by  ships  whose  commanders  bore  the  commission  of 


THE   ENGLISH    DEMANDS. 


233 


no  recognized  power  or  sovereign  were  to  be  re- 
turned to  the  English  whenever  they  fell  into  the 
hands  of  Holland.  This  placed  the  States-General 
in  a  dilemma.  Paul  Jones  would  show  no  commis- 
sion except  that  of  America;  indeed,  he  had  no 
other.  In  Sir  Joseph's  mind  the  situation  was  this : 
The  States-General  would  comply  with  the  terms  of 
the  treaty  or  it  would  not.  If  it  did,  he  would  get 
possession  of  the  ships  and  of  Jones  as  well.  If 
it  did  not,  the  logic  of  events  would  indicate  that  the 
States-General  considered  the  commission  which 
Paul  Jones  bore  as  being  valid,  in  that  it  was  issued 
by  a  sovereign  power.  This  would  be  in  effect  a 
recognition  of  belligerency.  In  other  words,  the 
shrewd  British  diplomatist  was  endeavoring  to  force 
the  hand  of  the  States-General.  To  determine  the 
position  of  Holland  with  regard  to  the  revolted 
colonies  of  Great  Britain  was  a  matter  of  greater 
moment  than  to  secure  Paul  Jones  or  to  receive  the 
two  ships,  the  loss  of  which,  except  so  far  as  it 
affronted  the  pride  of  England,  was  of  no  conse- 
quence whatever.  The  States-General,  however, 
endeavored  to  evade  the  issue  and  postpone  the  de- 
cision, for,  while  their  "  High  Mightinesses  "  re- 
fused to  cause  "the  ships  to  be  given  up,  they  ordered 
Jones  to  leave  the  harbor  at  once,  and  they  earnestly 
disclaimed  any  intention  of  recognizing  the  revolted 
colonies. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  since  there  were  two  parties 
in  the  government  of  Holland,  and  two  opinions  on 
the  subject,  they  could  come  to  no  more  definite 
conclusion.  Jones  was  intensely  popular  with  the 
people,  and  the  democratic  opinion  favored  the  im- 


234  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

mediate  recognition  of  American  independence,  and 
protested  against  any  arbitrary  action  toward  him 
and  his  ships.  The  Prince  of  Orange  and  the  aris- 
tocratic party  took  the  contrary  view,  and  they 
pressed  it  upon  him  as  far  as  they  dared.  Realizing 
the  precarious  nature  of  his  stay  in  Holland,  Jones 
immediately  set  to  work  with  his  usual  energy  to 
refit  the  ships,  especially  the  Serapis.  Dispatching 
a  full  account  of  his  cruise  and  his  expedition  to 
Franklin,  he  went  in  person  to  Amsterdam  to  facili- 
tate his  desire.  A  contemporary  account  states  that 
he  was  dressed  in  an  American  naval  uniform,* 
wearing  on  his. head,  instead  of  the  usual  cocked  hat, 
a  Scotch  bonnet  edged  with  gold  lace. 

When  he  appeared  in  the  exchange  he  received 
a  popular  ovation,  which  naturally  greatly  pleased 
him.  However,  he  modestly  strove  to  escape  the 
overwhelming  demonstrations  of  admiration  and 
approval  with  which  he  was  greeted,  by  retiring  to 
a  coffee  room,  but  he  was  compelled  to  show  him- 
self again  and  again  at  the  window  in  response  to 
repeated  demands  from  crowds  of  people  assem- 
bled in  the  street  who  desired  a  sight  of  him.  He 
was  made  the  hero  of  song  and  story,  and  one  of  the 
ballads  of  the  time,  a  rude,  rollicking,  drinking 

*  By  resolution  of  the  Marine  Committee,  dated  Septem- 
ber 5,  1776,  this  was,  for  captains:  "A  coat  of  blue  cloth 
with  red  lapels,  slashed  cuffs,  a  stand-up  collar,  flat  yellow 
buttons,  blue  breeches,  and  a  red  waistcoat  with  yellow 
lace."  In  Jones'  case  the  "  flat  yellow  buttons  "  were  made 
of  gold  and  the  lace  was  woven  of  the  same  precious  tissue. 
Nothing  was  too  good  for  him,  for  the  rank  he  supported, 
and  the  cause  he  upheld. 


A   POPULAR    HERO.  235 

song,  very  popular  among  sailors,  which  celebrates 
his  exploits,  is  sung  to  this  day  in  the  streets  of 
Amsterdam.*  So  delighted  were  the  Dutch  with 
the  humiliation  he  had  inflicted  upon  their  ancient 
enemy  that  some  of  the  principal  men  of  the  nation, 
including  the  celebrated  Baron  van  der  Capellen, 
subsequently  noted  for  his  friendship  for  America 
(evidently  not  in  harmony  with  the  aristocratic 
party),  entered  into  a  correspondence  with  him, 
which  must  have  been  highly  flattering  to  him,  from 
the  expressions  of  admiration  and  approval  with 
which  every  letter  of  the  baron's  abounds.  They 
desired  to  receive  at  first  hand  an  account  of  his 
exploits.  In  response  to  this  request  Jones  had 
his  report  to  Dr.  Franklin  copied  and  sent  to  van 
der  Capellen,  together  with  other  documents  illus- 
trative of  his  career,  accompanied  by  the  following 
letter : 

"ON  BOARD  THE  SERAPIS  AT  THE  TEXEL, 
' '  October  79,  7779. 

"  MY  LORD  :  Human  nature  and  America  are 
under  a  very  singular  obligation  to  you  for  your 
patriotism  and  friendship,  and  I  feel  every  grateful 
sentiment  for  your  generous  and  polite  letter. 

"  Agreeable  to  your  request  I  have  the  honour 
to  inclose  a  copy  of  my  letter  to  his  Excellency  Doc- 
tor Franklin,  containing  a  particular  account  of  my 
late  expedition  on  the  coasts  of  Britain  and  Ireland, 
by  which  you  will  see  that  I  have  already  been 
praised  far  more  than  I  have  deserved ;  but  I  must 
at  the  same  time  beg  leave  to  observe  that  by  the 

*  See  Appendix  No.  IV. 


236  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES.. 

other  papers  which  I  take,  the  liberty  to  inclose 
(particularly  the  copy  of  my  letter  to  the  Countess 
of  Selkirk,  dated  the  day  of  my  arrival  at  Brest  from 
the  Irish  Sea),  I  hope  you  will  be  convinced  that 
in  the  British  prints  I  have  been  censured  unjustly. 
I  was,  indeed,  born  in  Britain,  but  I  do  not  in- 
herit the  degenerate  spirit  of  that  fallen  nation, 
which  I  at  once  lament  and  despise.  It  is  far  be- 
neath me  to  reply  to  their  hireling  invectives.  They 
are  strangers  to  the  inward  approbation  that  greatly 
animates  and  rewards  the  man  who  draws  his  sword 
only  in  support  of  the  dignity  of  freedom. 

"  America  has  been  the  country  of  my  fond  elec- 
tion from  the  age  of  thirteen,  u'licn  I  first  sau1  it*  I 
had  the  honour  to  hoist,  with  my  own  hands,  the 
flag  of  freedom,  the  first  time  that  it  wcs  displayed 
on  the  Delaware,  and  I  have  attended  it  with  ven- 
eration ever  since  on  the  Ocean ;  I  see  it  respected 
even  here,  in  spite  of  the  pitiful  Sir  Joseph,  and  I 
ardently  wish  and  hope  very  soon  to  exchange  a 
salute  with  the  flag  of  this  Republick.  Let  but  the 
two  Republicks  join  hands,  and  they  will  give  Peace 
to  the  World." 

Among  the  documents  transmitted  was  the  fa- 
mous letter  to  Lady  Selkirk,  of  which  sententious 
epistle  he  evidently  remained  inordinately  proud. 
In  acknowledging  this  courtesy  van  der  Capellen 
wrote  as  follows : 

"  The  perusal  of  the  letters  with  which  you  have 
favoured  me  has  done  the  very  same  effect  upon 

*  Italics  mine. 


BARON   VAN   DER   CAPELLEN.  237 

me  that  his  Excell.  Dr.  Franklin  expected  they 
would  do  on  the  Countess  of  Selkirk,  as  you  are 
represented  in  some  of  our  Newspapers  as  a  rough, 
unpolished  sailor,  not  only,  but  even  as  a  man  of 
little  understanding  and  no  morals  and  sensibility, 
and  as  I  think  the  4  papers  extremely  fit  to  destroy 
these  malicious  aspersions,  I  must  take  the  liberty 
of  asking  your  permission  to  publish  them  in  our 
gazettes.  The  public  will  soon  make  this  very  just 
conclusion  that  the  man  honoured  by  the  friendship 
and  intimacy  of  a  Franklin  can  not  be  such  as  you 
hare  been  represented.*  There  are  three  points  on 
which  you  will  oblige  me  by  giving  some  elucida- 
tion, ist.  whether  you  have  any  obligations  to 
Lord  Selkirk?  2d.  whether  Lady  Selkirk  has  ac- 
cepted your  generous  offer?  3d.  whether  you  have 
a  commission  of  France  besides  that  of  the  Con- 
gress? 'Tis  not  a  vain  curiosity  that  incites  me  to 
be  so  importunate ;  no,  sir,  the  two  first  questions 
are  often  repeated  to  me  by  your  enemies,  or,  at 
least,  by  prejudiced  people ;  and  as  to  the  last,  a 
relative  of  mine,  a  known  friend  of  America,  has 
addressed  himself  to  me  for  information  on  that 
subject,  which  he  will  be  glad  to  have  before  the 
States  of  his  province,  of  which  he  is  a  member 
(but  not  yet,  as  I  am,  expelled  the  house),  be  as-, 
sembled. 

"  You  will  greatly  oblige  me  by  sending  me  as 
soon  as  possible  such  information  as  you  will  think 
proper  to  grant. 

"  You  may  rely  on  our  discretion ;  we  can  keep 

*  Italics  mine. 


238  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

a  secret,  too.    I  am  in  a  great  hurry,  with  the  most 
perfect  esteem  .  .  ." 

The  baron's  statement  gives  us  a  contemporary 
opinion — one  of  entire  approbation,  by  the  way — 
of  the  letter  to  Lady  Selkirk,  and  it  shows  us  that 
our  great-grandfathers  looked  at  things  with  differ- 
ent eyes  from  ours. 

In  reply,  Jones  dispatched  the  following  letter 
a  month  later : 

"ALLIANCE,  TEXEL,  November  29,  1779. 
"  MY  LORD  :  Since  I  had  the  honour  to  receive 
your  second  esteemed  letter  I  have  unexpectedly 
had  occasion  to  revisit  Amsterdam ;  and,  having 
changed  ships  since  my  return  to  the  Texel,  I  have 
by  some  accident  or  neglect  lost  or  mislaid  your 
letter.  I  remember,  however,  the  questions  it  con- 
tained:  ist,  whether  I  ever  had  any  obligation  to 
Lord  Selkirk  ?  2dly,  whether  he  accepted  my  offer  ? 
and  3dly,  whether  I  have  a  French  commission  ?  I 
answer:  I  have  never  had  any  obligation  to  Lord 
Selkirk,  except  for  his  good  opinion,  nor  does 
know  me  nor  mine  except  by  character.  Lord  Sel- 
kirk wrote  me  an  answer  to  my  letter  to  the  Count- 
ess, but  the  Ministry  detained  it  in  the  general  post 
office  in  London  for  a  long  time,  and  then  returned 
it  to  the  author,  who  afterward  wrote  to  a  friend  of 
his  (M.  Alexander),  an  acquaintance  of  Doctor 
Franklin's  then  at  Paris,  giving  him  an  account  of 
the  fate  of  his  letter  to  me  &  desiring  him  to 
acquaint  his  Excellency  and  myself  that  if  the  plate 
was  restored  by  Congress  or  by  any  public  Body  he 
would  accept  it,  but  that  he  would  not  think  of  ac- 


A   NICE   SENSE   OF   HONOR. 


239 


cepting  it  from  my  private  generosity.  The  plate 
has,  however,  been  bought,  agreeable  to  my  letter 
to  the  Countess,  and  now  lays  in  France  at  her  dis- 
posal. As  to  the  3rd  article,  /  never  bore  nor  acted 
under  any  other  commission  than  what  I  have  received 
from  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  of  America* 

"  I  am  much  obliged  to  you,  my  Lord,  for  the 
honour  you  do  me  by  proposing  to  publish  the 
papers  I  sent  you  in  my  last,  but  it  is  an  honour 
which  I  must  decline,  because  I  can  not  publish 
my  letter  to  a  lady  without  asking  and  obtaining  the 
lady's  consent,  and  because  I  have  a  very  modest 
opinion  of  my  writings,  being  conscious  that  they 
are  not  of  sufficient  value  to  claim  the  notice  of 
the  public.  I  assure  you,  my  Lord,  it  has  given 
me  much  concern  to  see  an  extract  of  my  rough 
journal  in  print,  and  that,  too,  under  the  disadvan- 
tage of  a  translation.  That  mistaken  kindness  of  a 
friend  will  make  me  cautious  how  I  communicate 
my  papers. 

"  I  have  the  honour  to  be,  my  Lord,  with  great 
esteem  and  respect, 

"  Your  most  obliged, 

"  And  very  humble  servant." 

The  nice  delicacy  of  his  conduct  in  refusing  to 
permit  the  publication  of  a  letter  to  a  lady  without 
her  consent  goes  very  far  toward  redeeming  the  ab- 
surdity of  the  letter  itself.  While  this  interesting 
correspondence  was  going  on,  events  of  great  mo- 
ment were  transpiring.  In  the  first  place,  Captain 
Pearson  was  protesting  against  his  detention  as  a 

*  Italics  mine. 


240  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

prisoner  in  the  most  vehement  way,  and  otherwise 
behaving  in  a  very  ill-bred  manner.  When  the  com- 
modore offered  to  return  him  his  plate,  linen,  and 
other  property,  which  had  been  taken  from  the 
Serapis,  he  refused  to  accept  it  from  Jones  ;  but  he 
intimated  that  he  would  receive  it  from  the  hand 
of  Captain  de  Cottineau  !  Jones  had  the  magnanim- 
ity to  overlook  this  petty  quibbling,  and  returned 
the  property  through  the  desired  channel.  Pearson, 
like  Jones,  was  of  humble  origin  ;  but,  unlike  Jones, 
he  never  seems  to  have  risen  above  it.  On  October 
he  addressed  the  following  note  to  Jones  : 


"  PALLAS,  TUESDAY  EVENING,  October  19,  7779. 
"  Captain  Jones,  Serapis. 

"  Captain  Pearson  presents  his  compliments  to 
Captain  Jones,  and  is  sorry  to  find  himself  so  little 
attended  to  in  his  present  situation  as  not  to  have 
been  favoured  with  either  a  Call  or  a  line  from  Cap- 
tain Jones  since  his  return  from  Amsterdam.  Cap- 
tain P  ...  is  sorry  to  say  that  he  can  not  look 
upon  such  behaviour  in  any  other  light  than  as  a 
breach  of  that  Civility,  which  his  Rank,  as  well  as 
behaviour  on  all  occasions  entitles  to,  he  at  the  same 
time  wishes  to  be  informed  by  Captain  Jones 
whether  any  Steps  has  been  taken  toward  the  en- 
largement or  exchange  of  him,  his  officers  and  peo- 
ple, or  what  is  intended  to  be  done  with  them.  As 
he  can  not  help  thinking  it  a  very  unprecedented 
circumstance  their  being  kecped  here  as  prisoners 
on  board  of  ship,  being  so  long  in  a  neutral  port." 

He  received  in  return  this  decided  and  definite 
reply  : 


A  SHARP   LETTER.  241 

"  SERAPIS,  WEDNESDAY,  October  20,  7779. 
"  Captain  Pearson. 

"  SIR  :  As  you  have  not  been  prevented  from 
corresponding  with  your  friends,  and  particularly 
with  the  English  ambassador  at  The  Hague,  I  could 
not  suppose  you  to  be  unacquainted  with  his  me- 
morial, of  the  8th,  to  the  States-General,  and  there- 
fore I  thought  it  fruitless  to  pursue  the  negotiation 
for  the  exchange  of  the  prisoners  of  war  now  in  our 
hands. 

"  I  wished  to  avoid  any  painful  altercation  with 
you  on  that  subject ;  I  was  persuaded  that  you  had 
been  in  the  highest  degree  sensible  that  my  be- 
haviour '  toward  you  had  been  far  from  a  breach  of 
civility.'  This  charge  is  not,  Sir,  a  civil  return  for 
the  polite  hospitality  and  disinterested  attentions 
which  you  have  hitherto  experienced. 

"  I  know  not  what  difference  of  respect  is  due  to 
'  Rank,'  between  your  service  and  ours ;  I  sup- 
pose, however,  the  difference  must  be  thought  very 
great  in  England,  since  I  am  informed  that  Captain 
Cunningham,  of  equal  denomination,  and  who  bears 
a  senior  rank  in  the  service  of  America,  than  yours 
in  the  service  of  England,  is  now  confined  at  Plym- 
outh in  a  dungeon,  and  in  fetters. 

"  Humanity,  which  hath  hitherto  superseded  the 
plea  of  retaliation  in  American  breasts,  has  induced 
me  (notwithstanding  the  procedure  of  Sir  Joseph 
Yorke)  to  seek  after  permission  to  land  the  danger- 
ously wounded,  as  well  prisoners  as  Americans, 
to  be  supported  and  cured  at  the  expense  of  our 
Continent.  The  permission  of  the  Government  has 
been  obtained,  but  the  magistrates  continue  to  make 
17 


COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

objections.  I  shall  not  discontinue  my  application. 
I  am  ready  to  adopt  any  means  that  you  may  pro- 
pose for  their  preservation  and  recovery,  and  in  the 
meantime  we  shall  continue  to  treat  them  with  the 
utmost  care  and  attention,  equally,  as  you  know, 
to  the  treatment  of  our  people  of  the  same  rank. 

"  As  it  is  possible  that  you  have  not  yet  seen  the 
memorial  of  your  ambassador  to  the  States-General, 
I  enclose  a  paper  which  contains  a  copy,  and  I  be- 
lieve he  has  since  written  what,  in  the  opinion  of 
good  men,  will  do  still  less  honour  to  his  pen. 

"  I  can  not  conclude  without  informing  you  that 
unless  Captain  Cunningham  is  immediately  better 
treated  in  England,  I  expect  orders  in  consequence 
from  His  Excellency  Dr.  Franklin ;  therefore,  I  be- 
seech you,  Sir,  to  interfere." 

The  States-General  having  refused  to  consent 
to  the  restoration  of  the  ships  and  the  surrender  of 
the  prisoners,  Paul  Jones  went  to  The  Hague  for 
the  purpose  of  pleading  his  own  cause ;  and  there, 
through  the  representations  of  the  French  ambas- 
sador, the  Due  de  la  Vauguyon,  received  permis- 
sion from  their  High  Mightinesses  to  land  the  more 
dangerously  wounded  among  his  prisoners  and 
crew  as  well,  numbering  over  one  hundred,  in  order 
that  he  might  better  care  for  them  and  establish 
them  in  more  comfortable  quarters  than  the  crowded 
ships  permitted. 

From  motives  of  humanity,  in  view  of  the  con- 
dition of  the  prisoners,  Sir  Joseph  Yorke  acquiesced 
in  this  arrangement.  It  was  first  proposed  that 
Jones  should  land  them  and  establish  a  hospital  at 


EXIT    PEARSON.  243 

Helder;  but  the  magistrates  of  that  town  objecting 
to  the  proposition,  a  fort  on  the  Texel  was  assigned 
to  him,  of  which  the  entire  charge  was  committed  to 
him.  Colonel  de  Weibert,  with  a  sufficient  force  to 
garrison  the  works,  was  placed  in  command  of  the 
fort. 

Meanwhile,  the  charges  against  Landais,  having 
been  formulated  and  signed,  were  dispatched  to 
Franklin,  who,  with  the  consent  of  the  French  Gov- 
ernment, ordered  him  to  resign  the  command  of 
the  Alliance  and  repair  immediately  to  Paris.  Be- 
fore he  left  the  Texel  the  erratic  Frenchman  com- 
pelled Captain  de  Cottineau  to  accord  him  the  honor 
of  a  duel.  As  Landais  was  an  expert  swordsman,  he 
succeeded  in  severely  wounding  his  less  skillful  but 
far  more  worthy  antagonist.  Elated  by  this  exploit, 
the  mad  Frenchman  sent  Jones  a  challenge  also. 
In  reply  to  Landais'  note,  the  commodore,  Marius- 
like,  promptly  dispatched  men  to  arrest  him ;  but 
Landais  got  wind  of  the  attempt  and  hastened  to 
escape,  taking  up  his  departure  for  Paris.  During 
the  stay  in  the  Texel  Jones  succeeded  in  effecting 
the  exchange  of  Captain  Pearson  for  Captain  Gus- 
tavus  Cunningham,  whom  he  had  at  last  the  pleas- 
ure of  receiving  upon  his  own  ship.*  Meanwhile, 

*  As  this  is  the  last  appearance  of  Pearson  in  our  pages, 
it  may  be  interesting  to  note  that  when  he  returned  to  Eng- 
land he  was  knighted  for  "  his  gajlant  defense  of  the  Serapis 
against  a  greatly  superior  force";  in  addition  to  which  the 
merchants  of  London  presented  him,  and  Captain  Piercy  as 
well,  with  very  valuable  services  of  plate  for  their  efficient 
protection  of  their  convoy.  Pearson  afterward  rose  to  high 
rank  in  the  British  service.  He  certainly  had  protected  his 
convoy,  for  all  of  them  escaped,  and  the  gratitude  of  the 


244  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

with  true  British  persistence,  Sir  Joseph  kept  at  the 
States-General,  and  it  in  turn  pressed  upon  Jones, 
who  imperturbably  passed  the  matter  on  to  the 
French  ambassador  and  Dr.  Franklin. 

On  the  12th  of  November,  to  relieve  a  situation 
which  had- become*  well-nigh  insupportable,  the 
French  Government,  with  the  consent  of  Franklin, 
directed  that  the  command  of  the  Serapis  should 
be  given  to  Captain  de  Cottineau,  and  that  all 
the  other  vessels,  except  the  Alliance,  to  which 
the  French  had  no  claim,  should  hoist  the  French 
flag,  and  that  the  Americans  should  be  sent  on 
board  the  Alliance,  which  should  be  turned  over 
to  Paul  Jones.  To  his  everlasting  regret,  Jones  had 
to  obey  the  heart-breaking  order,  and  in  one  mo- 
ment found  himself  deprived  of  his  command  and 
his  prizes  taken  from  him.  It  was  a  crushing  blow, 
but  he  had  no  option  save  to  bear  it  as  best  he  could. 
The  exchange  was  effected  at  night,  and  the  next 
morning,  when  the  Dutch  admiral  sent  his  flag  cap- 
merchants  was  natural.  On  the  other  hand,  he  had  been 
beaten  by  an  inferior  force,  and  merited  no  honors  on  that 
score.  As  a  matter  of  fact,  the  Serapis  alone,  to  say  nothing 
of  the  Countess  of  Scarborough,  was  nearly  a  match  for 
Jones'  whole  squadron.  Suppose,  for  instance,  that  Jones 
had  been  in  command  of  the  Serapis  and  Pearson  of  the 
Richard.  Does  anybody  doubt  that  Jones  could  have  beaten 
the  Richard,  the  Alliance,  and  the  Pallas  with  the  Serapis 
alone?  But  it  is  unprofitable  to  discuss  this  question 
further.  When  Jones  heard  of  these  honors,  he  is  reported 
to  have  made  the  following  remark  : 

"  He  has  done  well,  and  if  he  get  another  ship  and  I  fall 
in  with  him  again,  I  will  make  a  duke  of  him."  There  is  a 
grim  humor  about  his  comment  which  is  highly  pleasing,  in 
spite  of  Jones'  subsequent  repudiation  of  it. 


JONES   GIVES    UP   THE   SERAPIS.  245 

tain  on  board  the  Serapis  to  attempt  his  usual  bully- 
ing, he  was  surprised  to  see  the  French  flag  flying 
from  her  gaff  end,  and  to  be  informed  that  she  was 
now  the  property  of  France,  as  were  all  the  other 
ships  except  the  Alliance.  Proceedings  at  once, 
therefore,  fell  to  the  ground  as  regarded  all  the  ships 
but  the  American  frigate.  There  was  no  possible 
reason  for  giving  up  the  ships  of  the  French  king 
to  the  British  Government,  so  Sir  Joseph  Yorke 
necessarily,  although  with  a  very  bad  grace, 
dropped  the  matter,  and .  a  short  time  after  the 
French  ships  and  the  prizes  sailed  with  the  merchant 
fleet  under  a  strong  Dutch  convoy  for  France, 
where  they  all  arrived  safely.  Yorke  persisted,  how- 
ever, in  attempting  to  secure  the  person  of  Jones,  it 
is  gravely  alleged,  through  the  efforts  of  private 
individuals,  kidnappers  or  bravos.  At  any  rate,  he 
redoubled  his  representations  regarding  the  Alli- 
ance, and  his  efforts  to  force  the  departure,  of  the 
ship  that  she  might  fall  into  the  hands  of  the  wait- 
ing English. 

The  Serapis  had  been  thoroughly  overhauled 
and  refitted,  and  the  other  ships,  with  the  exception 
of  the  Alliance,  were  in  good  shape.  By  his  un- 
sailorly  antics  and  foolish  arrangements  Landais 
had  almost  destroyed  the  qualities  of  that  noble 
frigate.  She  was  in  a  dreadful  condition.  Thirteen 
Dutch  men-of-war,  all  of  them  two-deckers,  or  line 
of  battle  ships,  had  assembled  in  the  Texel  to  en- 
force the  orders  of  the  States-General,  which,  on 
the  1 7th  of  November,  by  a  specific  resolution  di- 
rected the  Admiralty  Board  at  Amsterdam  to  com- 
mand Jones  to  let  no  opportunity  escape  to  put  to 


246  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

sea,  as  the  approach  of  winter  might  make  his  de- 
parture inconvenient  or  impossible  if  he  delayed 
longer.  Vice-Admiral  Rhynst,  who  had  succeeded 
Captain  Rimersina  (like  van  der  Capellen,  another 
friend  of  the  United  States)  in  the  command  of  the 
Dutch  fleet,  was  peremptorily  ordered  to  permit  no 
delay  which  was  not  unavoidable  in  the  carrying  out 
of  these  orders.  He  was  instructed  and  empowered 
to  use  force  if  necessary.  Outside  the  harbor  there 
was  a  constantly  increasing  number  of  English 
ships,  so  that  Jones  found  himself  "  between  the 
devil  and  the  deep  sea."  He  was  not  to  be  intimi- 
dated, however,  and  he  absolutely  refused  to  go  out 
at  all  until  he  was  ready,  sending  Admiral  Rhynst  a 
rather  boastful  letter  to  the  effect  that  he  could  not 
engage  more  than  three  times  his  force  with  any 
hope  of  success,  but  were  the  odds  any  less  he 
should  go  out  at  once.  M.  Dumas,  the  French 
commissary  and  the  agent  of  the  United  States  at 
The  Hague,  had  been  directed  to  proceed  to  the 
Texel  and  do  what  he  could  for  Jones,  and  an  in- 
teresting correspondence  was  carried  on  between 
them  and  the  French  ambassador  on  the  subject  of 
Jones'  departure.  With  clear-eyed  diplomacy  and 
stubborn  resolution  the  American  held  on ;  go  he 
would  not  until  he  was  ready !  It  was,  no  doubt, 
very  exasperating  to  the  Dutch,  and  they  did  every- 
thing possible  save  using  force  to  get  rid  of  their 
unwelcome  visitor. 

The  Alliance,  as  has  been  stated,  was  in  an  un- 
seaworthy  condition.  An  old-fashioned  sailing 
vessel  was  as  complex  and  delicate  a  thing  as  a 
woman ;  rude,  brutal,  and  unskillful  handling  had 


UPHOLDING   AMERICAN    HONOR. 


247 


the  same  effect  on  both  of  them — it  spoiled  them. 
Jones  at  once  began  the  weary  work  of  refitting  her 
so  far  as  his  limited  resources  provided.  The 
powder  which  had  been  saved  from  the  wreck  of  the 
Richard  replaced  the  spoiled  ammunition  of  the 
Alliance.  Two  cables  had  been  borrowed  from  the 
Serapis,  and  such  other  steps  taken  as  were  possible. 
When  the  squadron  was  turned  over  to  France  the 
prisoners,  except  those  already  exchanged  by  agree- 
ment between  Jones  and  Pearson,  also  were  directed 
to  be  surrendered  to  the  French  Government,  who 
immediately  exchanged  them  with  the  English  for 
an  equal  number  of  French  prisoners,  promising 
Franklin  that  they  would  presently  exchange  a  cor-, 
responding  number  of  French  prisoners  for  the 
Americans.  But  Jones  resolutely  refused  to  give 
up  all  of  his  prisoners.  In  spite  of  protests  and 
orders  he  re-embarked  the  hundred  men  who  had 
been  recovering  from  their  wounds  in  the  fort  on 
the  Texel,  and  taking  all  the  Americans  of  the 
squadron,  so  that  the  Alliance  was  heavily  over- 
manned, he  made  his  preparations  to  get  away. 

At  this  time  the  Due  de  la  Vauguyon,  by  the  di- 
rection of  De  Sartine,  made  Jones  the  offer  of  a 
French  naval  letter  of  marque,  which  might  have 
protected  the  captain  of  the  Alliance  on  her  pro- 
posed homeward  passage,  and  have  removed  all 
legal  cause  of  objection  as  to  her  stay  in  the  Texel. 
To  this  proposition,  which  he  considered  insulting, 
Jones  made  the  following  characteristic  answer : 

"  MY  LORD  :  Perhaps  there  are  many  men  in 
the  world  who  would  esteem  as  an  honour  the  com- 


248  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

mission  that  I  have  this  day  refused.  My  rank  from 
the  beginning  knew  no  superior  in  the  marine  of 
America;  how  then  must  I  be  humbled  were  I  to 
accept  a  letter  of  marque!  I  should,  my  lord, 
esteem  myself  inexcusable  were  I  to  accept  even  a 
commission  of  equal  or  superior  denomination  to 
that  I  bear,  unless  I  were  previously  authorised  by 
Congress,  or  some  other  competent  authority  in 
Europe.  And  I  must  tell  you  that,  on  my  arrival 
at  Brest  from  the  Irish  Channel,  Count  D'Orvilliers 
offered  to  procure  for  me  from  court  a  commission 
of  '  Capitaine  de  Vaisseau,'  which  I  did  not  then 
accept  for  the  same  reason,  although  the  war  be- 
.tween  France  and  England  was  not  then  begun, 
and  of  course  the  commission  of  France  would  have 
protected  me  from  an  enemy  of  superior  force. 

"  It  is  a  matter  of  the  highest  astonishment  to 
me  that,  after  so  many  compliments  and  fair  pro- 
fessions, the  court  should  offer  the  present  insult 
to  my  understanding,  and  suppose  me  capable  of 
disgracing  my  present  commission.  I  confess  that 
I  never  merited  all  the  praise  bestowed  on  my  past 
conduct,  but  I  also  feel  that  I  have  far  less  merited 
such  a  reward.  Where  profession  and  practice  are 
so  opposite  I  am  no  longer  weak  enough  to  form  a 
wrong  conclusion.  They  may  think  as  they  please  of 
me;  for  u'hcre  I  can  not  continue  my  esteem,  praise  or 
censure  from  any  man  is  to  me  a  matter  of  indifference.* 

"  I  am  much  obliged  to  them,  however,  for  hav- 
ing at  last  fairly  opened  my  eyes,  and  enabled  me 
to  discover  truth  from  falsehood. 

*  Italics  mine. 


UPHOLDING   AMERICAN    HONOR. 


249 


"  The  prisoners  shall  be  delivered  agreeable  to 
the  orders  which  you  have  done  me  the  honour  to 
send  me  from  his  excellency  the  American  ambas- 
sador in  France. 

"  I  will  also  with  great  pleasure  not  only  permit 
a  part  of  my  seamen  to  go  on  board  the  ships  under 
your  excellency's  orders,  but  I  will  also  do  my  ut- 
most to  prevail  with  them  to  embark  freely;  and  if 
I  can  now  or  hereafter,  by  any  other  honourable 
means,  facilitate  the  success  or  the  honour  of  his 
Majesty's  arms,  I  pledge  myself  to  you  as  his  am- 
bassador, that  none  of  his  own  subjects  would  bleed 
in  his  cause  with  greater  freedom  than  myself,  an 
American. 

"  It  gives  me  the  more  pain,  my  lord,  to  write 
this  letter,  because  the  court  has  enjoined  you  to 
prepare  what  would  destroy  my  peace  of  mind,  and 
my  future  veracity  in  the  opinion  of  the  world. 

"  When,  i^'itli  the  consent  of  the  court,  and  by 
order  of  the  American  ambassador,  I  gave  Ameri- 
can commissions  to  French  officers,  I  did  not  fill 
up  those  commissions  to  command  privateers,  nor 
even  for  a  rank  equal  to  that  of  their  commissions  in 
the  marine  of  France.  They  were  promoted  to  rank 
far  superior.  And  why  ?  Not  from  personal  friend- 
ship, nor  from  my  knowledge  of  their  services  and 
abilities  (the  men  and  their  characters  being  entire 
strangers  to  me),  but  from  the  respect  which  I  be- 
lieved America  would  wish  to  show  for  the  service 
of  France. 

"  While  I  remained  eight  months  seemingly 
forgot  by  the  court  at  Brest,  many  commissions, 
such  as  that  in  question,  were  offered  to  me ;  and  I 


250  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

believe  (when  I  am  in  pursuit  of  plunder)  I  can  still 
obtain  such  an  one  without  application  to  court. 

"  I  hope,  my  lord,  that  my  behaviour  through 
life  will  ever  entitle  me  to  the  continuance  of  your 
good  wishes  and  opinion,  and  that  you  will  take 
occasion  to  make  mention  of  the  warm  and  personal 
affection  with  which  my  heart  is  impressed  toward 
his  Majesty." 

In  no  other  letter  among  the  many  which  I  have 
examined  does  Jones  appear  in  so  brilliant  and  suc- 
cessful a  light.  His  high-souled  decision,  and  his 
dignified  but  explicit  way  of  conveying  it,  alike 
do  him  the  greatest  credit.  In  the  hands  of  such  a 
man,  not  only  his  own  honor  but  that  of  his  country 
would  be  perfectly  safe  always.  As  usual,  on  the 
1 6th  of  December,  he  inclosed  a  copy  of  his  letter 
to  Franklin  with  the  following  original  comment : 

"  I  hope,"  he  said,  "  that  the  within  copy  of  my 
letter  to  the  Due  de  la  Vauguyon  will  meet  your 
approbation,  for  I  am  persuaded  that  it  never  could 
be  your  intention  or  wish  that  I  should  be  made  the 
tool  of  any  great  r  .  .  .  whatever ;  or  that  the  com- 
mission of  America  should  be  overlaid  by  the  dirty 
piece  of  parchment  which  I  have  thus  rejected! 
They  have  played  upon  my  good  humour  too  long 
already,  but  the  spell  is  at  last  dissolved.  They 
would  play  me  off  with  assurance  of  the  personal 
and  particular  esteem  of  the  king,  to  induce  me  to 
do  what  would  render  me  contemptible  even  in  the 
eyes  of  my  own  servants !  Accustomed  to  speak 
untruths  themselves,  they  would  also  have  me  to 
give  under  my  hand  that  I  am  a  liar  and  a  scoundrel. 


UPHOLDING   AMERICAN    HONOR. 


251 


They  are  mistaken,  and  I  would  tell  them  what  you 
did  to  your  naughty  servant.  '  We  have  too  con- 
temptible an  opinion  of  one  another's  understand- 
ing to  live  together.'  I  could  tell  them,  too,  that  if 
M  .  .  .  de  C  .  .  .  had  not  taken  such  safe  precau- 
tions to  keep  me  honest  by  means  of  his  famous 
concordat,  and  to  support  me  by  so  many  able  col- 
leagues, these  great  men  would  not  have  been  re- 
duced to  such  mean  shifts ;  for  the  prisoners  could 
have  been  landed  at  Dunkirk  the  day  that  I  entered 
the  Texel,  and  I  could  have  brought  in  double  the 
numbers." 

After  annoying  him  with  daily  injunctions  and 
commands,  on  the  i6th  of  December  Vice  Admiral 
Rhynst  finally  commanded  Jones  to  come  on  board 
his  flagship  and  report  his  intentions.  Jones 
promptly  refused  to  obey  this  astonishing  order, 
telling  the  Dutchman  that  he  had  no  right  to  order 
him  anywhere.  Whereupon  the  vice  admiral  wrote 
to  him  as  follows : 

"  I  desire  you  by  this  present  letter  to  inform  me 
how  I  must  consider  the  Alliance  which  you  are  on 
board  of:  whether  as  a  French  or  American  vessel. 
If  the  first,  I  expect  you  to  cause  his  Majesty's  com- 
mission to  be  "shown  to  me,  and  that  you  display  the 
French  flag  and  pendant,  announcing  it  by  dis- 
charging a  gun.  If  the  second,  I  expect  you  to 
omit  no  occasion  of  departing,  according  to  the 
orders  of  their  High  Mightinesses." 

Jones  had  passed  beyond  the  arguing  point,  and 
treated  this  communication  with  contempt.  He 


252  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

rightly  judged  that  the  Dutch  would  not  resort  to 
force  in  the  end,  and  he  refused  to  go  out  to  certain 
capture;  indeed,  he  would  not  move  until  he  was 
ready  and  a  fair  chance  of  escape  presented  itself. 

When  the  French  Commissary  of  Marine  at  Am- 
sterdam, the  Chevalier  de  Lironcourt,  saw  Rhynst's 
communication,  which  Jones  sent  to  him,  he  sug- 
gested that  Jones  might  waive  the  point  and  display 
French  colors  on  his  ship,  disclaiming,  at  the  same 
time,  any  ulterior  motive  not  in  consonance  with  the 
dignity  of  the  commander,  on  the  part  of  himself  or 
his  government,  in  this  proposition.  But  Jones  was 
not  to  be  moved  from  the  stand  he  had  taken.  The 
man  of  the  world  was  becoming  the  dauntless  citizen 
of  the  United  States  at  last.  He  curtly  told  the 
Dutch  admiral  that  he  had  no  orders  to  hoist  any 
other  flag  than  the  American,  and  that  it  only  should 
fly  from  the  gaff  of  his  ship.  He  also  told  him  that 
as  soon  as  a  pilot  would  undertake  to  carry  out  his 
ship  he  would  leave.  But  his  most  significant  action 
was  to  state  emphatically  to  the  vice  admiral's  flag 
captain,  who  came  aboard  the  Alliance  for  an  answer 
to  his  note  of  the  i6th,  that  he  was  tired  of  the 
annoyances,  insults,  and  threats  which  had  been  di- 
rected at  him  daily,  and  that  they  must  be  stopped 
in  future,  as  he  would  receive  no  more  communica- 
tions from  the  vice  admiral.  He  also  requested  the 
flag  captain  to  say  to  his  superior  officer  that,  al- 
though the  Dutch  flagship  mounted  sixty-four 
guns,  if  she  and  the  Alliance  were  at  sea  together 
the  vice  admiral's  conduct  toward  him  would  not 
have  been  tolerated  for  a  moment.  I  have  no  doubt 
that  Jones  meant  exactly  what  he  said,  and  I  think 


UPHOLDING   AMERICAN    HONOR.          253 

the  vice  admiral  was  lucky  in  not  being  required 
to  test  the  declaration.  From  this  time  until  his 
departure  no  communications  of  any  sorf.  were  re- 
ceived by  Jones  from  his  baffled  and  silenced  tor- 
mentor. 

He  had  done  all  that  mortal  man  could  do  to 
retain  his  prizes,  to  protract  his  stay  in  Dutch 
waters,  to  commit  Holland  to  the  side  of  the  United 
States,  to  effect  an  exchange  of  prisoners,  and  to 
maintain  the  honor  of  the  American  flag.  In  doing 
this,  on  all  sides  he  had  been  harassed  and  insulted 
beyond  measure.  It  was  therefore  some  consola- 
tion to  him  to  receive  on  the  2ist  the  following  note 
of  explanation  and  apology  from  De  la  Vauguyon : 

' '  December  21,  1779. 

"  I  perceive  with  pain,  my  dear  commodore,  that 
you  do  not  view  your  situation  in  the  right  light ;  and 
I  can  assure  you  that  the  ministers  of  the  king  have 
no  intention  to  cause  you  the  least  disagreeable  feel- 
ing, as  the  honourable  testimonials  of  the  esteem  of 
his  majesty,  which  I  send  you,  ought  to  convince 
you.  I  hope  you  will  not  doubt  the  s;ncere  desire 
with  which  you  have  inspired  me  to  procure  you 
every  satisfaction  you  may  merit.  It  can  not  fail  to 
incite  you  to  give  new  proofs  of  your  zeal  for  the 
common  cause  of  France  and  America.  I  flatter 
myself  to  renew,  before  long,  the  occasion  and  to 
procure  you  the  means  to  increase  still  more  the 
glory  you  have  already  acquired.  I  am  already  oc- 
cupied with  all  the  interest  I  promised  you ;  and  if 
my  view's  are  realized,  as  I  have  every  reason  to  be- 
lieve, you  will  be  at  all  events  perfectly  content ;  but 


254  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

I  must  pray  you  not  to  hinder  any  project  by  de- 
livering yourself  to  the  expressions  of  those  strong 
sensations  to  which  you  appear  to  give  way,  and 
for  which  there  is  really  no  foundation.  You  appear 
to  possess  full  confidence  in  the  justice  and  kindness 
of  the  king;  rely  also  upon  the  same  sentiments  on 
the  part  of  his  ministers." 

To  this  letter  Jones  sent  the  following  reply ; 
he  was  a  generous  man,  who  bore  no  malice : 

' '  ALLIANCE,  TEXEL,  December  25,  7779. 
"  The  Duke  de  Vauguyon. 

"  MY  LORD  :  I  have  not  a  heart  of  stone,  but  I 
am  duly  sensible  of  the  obligations  conferred  on 
me  by  the  very  kind  and  affectionate  letter  that  you 
have  done  me  the  honour  to  write  me  the  2ist  cur- 
rent. 

"  Were  I  to  form  my  opinion  of  the  ministry 
from  the  treatment  that  I  experienced  while  at 
Brest,  or  from  their  want  of  confidence  in  me  after- 
ward, exclusive  of  what  has  taken  place  since  I  had 
the  misfortune  to  enter  this  port,  I  will  appeal  to 
your  Excellency  as  a  man  of  candour  and  ingenu- 
ousness, whether  I  ought  to  desire  to  prolong  a  con- 
nection that  has  made  me  so  unhappy,  and  wherein 
I  have  given  so  little  satisfaction?  M.  de  Chev.  de 
Lironcourt  has  lately  made  me  reproaches  on  ac- 
count of  the  expense  that  he  says  France  has  been 
at  to  give  me  reputation,  in  preference  to  twenty  cap- 
tains of  the  royal  navy,  better  qualified  than  myself, 
and  who,  each  of  them,  solicited  for  the  command 
that  was  lately  given  to  me!  This,  I  confess,  is 
quite  new-  and  indeed  surprising  to  me,  and  had  I 


UPHOLDING  AMERICAN    HONOR. 


255 


known  it  before  I  left  France  I  certainly  should 
have  resigned  in  favour  of  the  twenty  men  of  supe- 
rior merit.  I  do  not,  however,  think  that  his  first 
assertion  is  true,  for  the  ministry  must  be  unworthy 
of  their  places  were  they  capable  of  squandering  the 
public  money  merely  to  give  an  individual  reputa- 
tion !  and  as  to  the  second,  I  fancy  the  court  will 
not  thank  him  for  having  given  me  this  information, 
whether  true  or  false.  I  may  add  here  that,  with 
a  force  so  ill-composed,  and  with  powers  so  limited, 
I  ran  ten  chances  of  ruin  and  dishonour  for  one 
of  gaining  reputation ;  and  had  not  the  plea  of 
humanity  in  favour  of  the  unfortunate  Americans  in 
English  dungeons  superseded  all  considerations  of 
self,  I  faithfully  assure  you,  my  lord,  that  I  would 
not  have  proceeded  under  such  circumstances  from 
Groix.  I  do  not  imbibe  hasty  prejudices  against 
any  individual,  but  when  many  and  repeated  cir- 
cumstances, conspiring  in  one  point,  have  inspired 
me  with  disesteem  toward  any  person,  I  must  see 
very  convincing  proofs  of  reformation  in  such  per- 
son before  my  heart  can  beat  again  with  affection 
in  his  favour ;  for  the  mind  is  free,  and  can  be 
bound  only  by  kind  treatment. 

"  You  do  me  great  honour,  as  well  as  justice, 
my  lord,  by  observing  that  no  satisfaction  can  be 
more  precious  to  me  than  by  giving  new  proofs  of 
my  zeal  for  the  common  cause  of  France  and  Amer- 
ica ;  and  the  interest  that  you  take  to  facilitate  the 
means  of  my  giving  such  proofs  by  essential  serv- 
ices, claims  my  best  thanks.  /  hope  I  shall  not, 
through  any  imprudence  of  mine,  render  ineffectual 
any  noble  design  that  may  be  in  contemplation  for  the 


256  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

general  good.*  Whenever  that  object  is  mentioned, 
my  private  concerns  are  out  of  the  question,  and 
where  1  can  not  speak  exactly  what  I  could  wish 
with  respect  to  my  private  satisfaction,  I  promise 
you  in  the  meantime  to  observe  a  prudent  silence. 
"  With  a  deep  sense  of  your  generous  senti- 
ments of  personal  regard  toward  me,  and  with  the 
most  sincere  wishes  to  merit  that  regard  by  my 
conduct  through  life." 

The  following  extract  from  a  letter  to  Robert 
Morris  well  indicates  how  his  treatment  by  the 
French  ambassador  rankled : 

"  By  the  within  despatches  for  Congress  I  am 
persuaded  you  will  observe  with  pleasure  that  my 
connection  with  a  court  is  at  an  end,  and  that  my 
prospect  of  returning  to  America  approaches.  The 
great  seem  to  wish  only  to  be  concerned  with  tools, 
who  dare  not  speak  or  write  truth.  I  am  not  sorry 
that  my  connection  with  them  is  at  an  end.  In  the 
course  of  that  connection  I  ran  ten  chances  of  ruin 
and  dishonour  for  one  of  reputation ;  and  all  the 
honours  or  profit  that  France  could  bestow  should 
not  tempt  me  again  to  undertake  the  same  service 
with  an  armament,  equally  ill  composed,  and  with 
powers  equally  limited.  It  affords  me  the  most  ex- 
alted pleasure  to  reflect  that,  when  I  return  to  Amer- 
ica, I  can  say  that  I  have  served  in  Europe  at  my  own 
expense,  and  without  the  fee  or  rcz^ard  of  a  court. \ 
When  the  prisoners  we  have  taken  are  safely  lodged 
in  France  I  shall  have  no  further  business  in  Eu- 

*  Italics  mine.  f  Italics  mine. 


UPHOLDING   AMERICAN    HONOR. 


257 


rope,  as  the  liberty  of  our  fellow  citizens  who  now 
suffer  in  English  prisons  will  then  be  secured;  and 
I  shall  hope  hereafter  to  be  usefully  employed  under 
the  immediate  direction  of  the  Congress." 

It  is  a  remarkable  thing  that,  during  the  per- 
plexities and  harassing  incidents  of  his  stay  in  the 
Texel,  with  the  constant  demands  made  upon  him 
in  every  direction,  the  difficulties  with  which  he  had 
to  cope,  the  responsibilities  he  assumed,  the  prob- 
lems he  had  to  solve,  and  the  dangers  grappled  with, 
he  found  time  to  carry  on  such  a  voluminous  and 
extraordinary  correspondence  as  has  been  pre- 
served. Among  other  documents  he  drew  up  a  long 
memorial  to  Congress  recounting  his  career  and 
public  services  to  date,  which  is  of  much  service  to 
those  who  strive  to  solve  the  enigma  of  his  com- 
plex life  and  character.  The  tendency  to  lionize  a 
hero  was  as  prevalent  then  as  now,  and  Jones  was 
compelled  by  the  exigencies  of  his  situation  to  re- 
fuse many  invitations  of  a  social  nature  at  Amster- 
dam and  The  Hague.  "  Duty,"  he  says,  "  must  take 
precedence  of  pleasure.  I  must  wait  a  more  favour- 
able opportunity  to  kiss  the  hands  of  the  fair."  Cer- 
tain young  impressionable  misses,  after  the  custom 
of  the  day,  indited  poetical  effusions  to  him.  In  the 
hurry  and  rush  of  business  he  could  only  find  time 
in  his  replies  to  deplore  the  fact  that  so  much  was 
expected  from  him  that  he  could  not  respond  in 
rhyme  to  these  metrical  communications. 


i- 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

THE  ESCAPE  OF  THE  ALLIANCE. 

CHRISTMAS  day  passed  gloomily  enough,  I  im- 
agine, for  the  Americans  on  the  Alliance.  There  had 
been  opportunities,  of  course,  when  it  would  have 
been  possible  for  Jones  to  have  made  the  mouth  of 
the  harbor,  but  his  capture  would  have  been  in- 
evitable. So,  on  one  pretext  or  another,  he  delayed 
until  the  night  of  the  2/th  of  December,  when  he 
weighed  anchor  and  dropped  down  to  the  mouth  of 
the  Texel.  Early  the  next  morning  in  a  howling 
gale  he  dashed  for  the  sea.  On  the  same  day  he 
sent  the  following  note  back  to  Dumas,  and  merrily 
proceeded  on  his  way: 

"  I  am  here,  my  dear  sir,  with  a  good  wind  at 
east,  and.  under  my  best*  American  colours ;  so  far 
you  have  your  wish.  What  may  be  the  event  of  this 
critical  moment  I  know  not;  I  am  not,  however, 
without  good  hopes.  Through  the  ignorance  or 
drunkenness  of  the  old  pilot  the  Alliance  last  night 
got  foul  of  a  Dutch  merchant  ship,  and  I  believe  the 
Dutchmen  cut  our  cable.  We  lost  the  best  bower 
anchor,  and  the  ship  was  brought  up  with  the  sheet 
anchor  so  near  the  shore  that  this  morning  I  have 
been  obliged  to  cut  the  cable  in  order  to  get  clear 
258 


tHE   ESCAPE   OF  THE   ALLIANCE.  2$$ 

of  the  shore,  and  that  I  might  not  lose  this  oppor- 
tunity of  escaping  from  purgatory." 

Though  he  had  escaped  from  the  Texel,  his 
situation  was  one  of  extreme  peril.  It  is  claimed 
that  no  less  than  forty  sail  were  on  the  lookout  for 
him  in  the  English  Channel ;  and,  besides  those  spe- 
cifically detailed  for  the  purpose,  there  were  a  num- 
ber of  ships  and  at  least  two  great  fleets  at  anchor 
in  these  narrow  waters,  which  he  would  have  to 
pass.  I  suppose  that  never  before  had  so  many  ves- 
sels been  on  the  lookout  for  a  single  ship  as  in 
this  instance.  It  never  seems  to  have  occurred  to 
the  blockading  ships  that  Jones  would  attempt 
to  pass  down  the  Channel ;  his  safest  course  from 
the  point  of  view  of  the  ordinary  man  would  have 
been  through  the  North  Sea  and  around  Scot- 
land and  Ireland.  But  Jones  was  not  an  ordinary 
man,  though  the  English  refused  to  see  the  fact. 
Consequently,  his  bold  course  took  them  by  sur- 
prise, and,  as  usual,  by  choosing  apparently  the  most 
dangerous  way  he  escaped.  And  the  way  of  it 
was  this :  By  the  exercise  of  his  usual  seamanship 
Jones  managed  to  hug  the  Flemish  banks  so  closely 
that  he  passed  to  windward  of  the  British  blockad- 
ing ships,  which  were  driven  to  the  northward  by 
the  same  gale  of  which  he  had  taken  advantage. 

The  wind  came  strongly  from  the  east,  and  un- 
der a  great  press  of  canvas  the  Alliance  staggered 
away  toward  the  south,  keeping  as  dose  as  possible 
to  the  weather  shore  until  all  danger  from  the  imme- 
diate blockading  fleet  was  avoided.  Then  Jones  ran 
for  the  middle  of  the  Channel,  and  the  next  day  the 


260  COMMODORE   PAUL  JOKES. 

Alliance  passed  through  the  straits  of  Dover  and 
ran  close  to  the  Goodwin  Sands,  passing  in  full  view 
of  a  large  English  fleet  anchored  in  the  Downs  only 
three  miles  to  leeward.  On  the  day  after,  the  29th, 
the  Alliance  flew  by  the  Isle  of  Wight,  running  near 
enough  to  take  a  good  look  at  another  fleet  at  Spit- 
head. 

On  the  ist  of  January  Jones  was  out  of  the 
Channel,  having  passed  in  sight  of,  and  almost  in 
range,  at  different  times  in  this  bold  dash  for  free- 
dom, of  several  British  ships  of  the  line,  just  out  of 
gunshot  to  leeward.  During  all  this  time  he  had 
not  ceased  to  fly  the  American  flag.  I  do  not  know 
of  a  more  splendid  piece  of  sea  bravado  than  this 
dash  of  the  Alliance  from  the  Texel.  The  daring 
and  gallantry  of  the  man  at  first  seemed  to  have 
led  him  into  injudicious  and  dangerous  situations 
when  he  took  the  Alliance  so  close  to  the  English 
coast  and  the  British  fleets ;  but  his  effrontery  was 
governed  by  that  sound  and  practical  sense  which 
ever  distinguished  his  conduct  from  mere  unthink- 
ing recklessness,  for  no  one  would  ever  imagine 
that  the  escaping  ship  would  take  such  a  course,  and 
those  vessels  on  the  lookout  for  him  would  prob- 
ably be  found  where  a  less  subtle  commander  would 
have  endeavored  to  pass — off  the  Flemish  coast  and 
near  the  French  shore,  for  instance.  Be  that  as  it 
may,  the  little  Alliance,  with  her  Stars  and  Stripes 
flapping  defiantly  in  the  great  breeze  in  the  face 
of  the  overmastering  English  ships,  running  the 
gantlet  of  her  enemies,  is  a  picture  we  love  to 
think  upon. 

The  ship  was  in  a  critical  condition.     Damages 


THE    ESCAPE   OF    THE   ALLIANCE.  26l 

which  she  had  incurred  in  her  voyage  from  Boston 
to  France  were  still  unrepaired.  Her  trim  had  been 
altered  for  the  worse  by  Landais'  blunders,  and  the 
improper  stowage  of  the  ballast  had  dangerously 
strained  her  and  greatly  diminished  her  speed, 
which  had  originally  been  very  high.  There  was 
no  way  these  things  could  have  been  temporarily  re- 
paired in  the  Texel ;  in  fact,  but  little  could  be  done 
until  the  vessel  reached  France.  Owing  to  the  un- 
sanitary regimen  of  Landais,  disease  had  broken  out 
at  different  times,  and  the  ship  had  become  so  dirty 
that  nothing  short  of  a -thorough  disinfection  would 
render  her  safe  for  her  crew.  She  was  much  over- 
crowded with  men,  all  actually  or  professedly 
American,  and  carried  a  hundred  prisoners  as  well. 
There  were  two  sets  of  officers  on  board — those 
originally  attached  to  her  and  the  officers  of  the 
Richard.  Jealousy  and  bickerings  between  the  two 
crews  were  prevalent.  Naturally,  they  had  no  love 
for  each  other.  The  officers  and  men  of  the 
Richard  could  not  forget  the  conduct  of  those  on 
the  Alliance,  and  they  looked  upon  them  with 
hatred  and  contempt.  Sailorlike,  the  men  of  the 
Alliance  reciprocated  that  feeling.  It  was  the  desire 
of  every  one,  except  Jones  and  a  few  others,  to  get 
to  France  at  once,  but  the  commodore  wished  to 
return  with  more  prizes ;  so  he  bore  away  to  the 
south  and  west,  seeking  for  ships,  impressing 
upon  his  discontented  men  that  the  Alliance  was 
equal  to  anything  under  a  fifty-gun  ship !  He  was 
not  fortunate  on  this  occasion,  however,  and  finally, 
to  avoid  a  threatened  gale,  he  ran  into  the  port  of 
Corunna  in  Spain,  on  the  i6th  of  January,  1780, 


262  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

where  he  was  kindly  received  and  hospitably  enter- 
tained. During  this  cruise,  in  spite  of  the  responsi- 
bilities of  his  position,  he  found  time  to  compose  the 
following  verses  in  reply  to  a  similar  communication 
which  he  had  received  from  the  daughter  of  M.  Du- 
mas (it  will  be  remembered  that  he  deplored  his  in- 
ability in  the  Texel  to  find  time  for  his  present  oc- 
cupation) : 

"  Were  I,  Paul  Jones,  dear  maid,  '  the  king  of  sea,' 

I  find  such  merit  in  thy  virgin  song, 
A  coral  crown  with  bays  I'd  give  to  thee, 

A  car  which  on  the  waves  should  smoothly  glide  along  ; 
The  "Nereides  all  about  thy  side  should  wait, 
And  gladly  sing  in  triumph  of  thy  state, 
'  Vivat !  vivat !  the  happy  virgin  Muse  ! 
Of  liberty  the  friend,  who  tyrant  power  pursues  ! ' 

"  Or,  happier  lot !     Were  fair  Columbia  free 

From  British  tyranny,  and  youth  still  mine, 
I'd  tell  a  tender  tale  to  one  like  thee 

With  artless  looks  and  breast  as  pure  as  thine. 
If  she  approved  my  flame,  distrust  apart, 
Like  faithful  turtles,  we'd  have  but  one  heart ; 
Together,  then,  we'd  tune  the  silver  lyre, 
As  love  or  sacred  freedom  should  our  lays  inspire. 

"  But  since,  alas  !  the  rage  of  war  prevails, 

And  cruel  Britons  desolate  our  land, 
For  freedom  still  I  spread  my  willing  sails. 

My  unsheath'd  sword  my  injured  country  shall  command. 
Go  on,  bright  maid  !  the  Muses  all  attend 
Genius  like  thine,  and  wish  to  be  its  friend. 
Trust  me,  although  conveyed  through  this  poor  shift, 
My  New  Year's  thoughts  are  grateful  for  thy  gift." 

I  have  read  worse  poetry  than  this,  also  better, 
but  it  is  very  creditable  to  the  sailor.     If  the  reader 


THE   STAY   AT   CORUNNA.  263 

has  a  low  opinion  of  it,  let  him  essay  some  verse- 
writing  himself.* 

While  at  Corunna,  the  ship  was  careened  and  her 
bottom  scraped  as  far  as  possible  without  docking 
her,  and,  having  procured  an  anchor  to  take  the 
place  of  the  two  lost  in  the  Texel,  Jones  prepared  to 
set  forth  once  more.  The  28th  of  January  was  fixed 
for  his  departure,  but  the  discontent  among  the 
crew  reached  such  a  pitch  that  they  positively  re- 
fused to  weigh  anchor  unless  they  received  at 
least  a  portion  of  their  pay  or  prize  money.  Noth- 
ing had  been  paid  them  from  the  time  the  ships 
had  been  put  in  commission  until  they  reached 
the  Texel.  There  Jones  had  received  from  Am- 
sterdam a  small  sum  of  money,  from  which  he  ad- 
vanced five  ducats  to  each  of  the  officers  and  one  to 
each  of  the  men.  The  amount,  compared  to  their 
dues  and  needs,  was  so  insignificant  that  many  of  the 
men  threw  the  money  into  the  sea  in  disgust — a 
very  foolish  but  extremely  sailorlike  action. 

There  were  many  patriotic  men  on  these  ships 
w7ho  merit  the  approbation  and  deserve  the  gratitude 
of  their  country.  They  had  shown,  especially  those 
belonging  to  the  Richard,  a  most  desperate  courage 
in  most  trying  scenes.  They  had  performed  services 
upon  which  no  monetary  value  could  be  placed,  and 
had  subjected  themselves  to  dangers  which  no  mere 
pecuniary  consideration  could  have  tempted  them 
to  face.  It  may  at  first,  therefore,  seem  surprising 
that  they  should  have  so  resolutely  demanded  their 

*  For  another  specimen  of  Jones'  verse-writing,  see  page 

277- 


264  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

pay  and  prize  money,  even  to  the  extent  of  mutiny- 
ing for  it;  but  it  is  a  common  experience  that  men 
who  will  freely  offer  themselves  for  the  most  dan- 
gerous undertakings,  and  who  really  are  actuated 
by  the  strongest  kind  of  patriotism,  will  quarrel  and 
rebel,  and  even  fight,  for  the  petty  amounts  prom- 
ised them  by  way  of  wages,  which  in  themselves 
neither  could  tempt  them  to,  nor  repay  them  for,  the 
sacrifices  they  had  cheerfully  undergone.  Frankly, 
I  have  the  greatest  sympathy  with  the  point  of  view 
of  the  unpaid  soldiers  or  sailors  of  the  past,  and  I 
quite  understand  their  demands  and  complaints 
under  such  circumstances. 

Perhaps  there  is  an  association  of  ideas  between 
fighting  for  the  liberties  of  one's  country  and  de- 
manding one's  dues.  Both  are  a  revolt  against  in- 
justice and  oppression.  The  mind  of  the  common 
sailor,  especially  of  that  day,  was  not  calculated  to 
draw  nice  distinctions,  and  he  could  see  little  dif- 
ference between  fighting  for  liberty  and  demanding 
that  the  country  whose  independence  he  periled 
his  life  to  establish  should  show  the  small  appre- 
ciation of  his  devotion  involved  in  paying  his 
scanty  wages  and  not  withholding  his  lawful  prize 
money.  Jones  struggled  for  rank,  station,  repu- 
tation, opportunity;  these  men  could  aspire  to  no 
higher  station  than  they  already  filled,  and  their 
corresponding  effort  was  for  the  money  justly 
due  them. 

The  Richard's  men  had  lost  practically  every- 
thing except  the  clothes  they  stood  in  when  their 
ship  went  down,  and  their  personal  needs  were  neces- 
sarily very  great.  The.  original  crew  of  the  Alliance 


A   BROKEN    PROMISE.  265 

were  under  the  impression  that  Jones  had  reserved 
from  the  small  sum  he  had  received  at  Amsterdam 
a  considerable  portion  for  himself.  There  is  not 
the  slightest  evidence  to  warrant  this  supposition. 
The  commodore  was  the  most  prodigal  and  gen- 
erous of  men,  and  his  whole  career  evidences  his 
entire  willingness  to  devote  his  own  personal  prop- 
erty to  the  welfare  and  wages  of  his  men.  He  finally 
persuaded  the  crew  to  get  under  way  by  promising 
to  run  direct  to  L'Orient,  where  he  hoped  they 
would  undoubtedly  receive  their  prize  money. 
With  this  understanding  the  crew  consented  to 
work  the  ship  to  that  point,  and  their  departure  was 
accordingly  taken  on  the  28th. 

When  the  vessel  was  fairly  at  sea,  however,  Jones 
summoned  the  officers  to  the  cabin  and  proposed 
that  they  should  cruise  two  or  three  weeks  in  those 
waters  before  making  their  promised  port.  I  am 
afraid  that  the  commodore  allowed  the  possibility 
of  taking  some  valuable  prizes  and  perhaps  another 
British  frigate  to  incline  him  to  break  his  promise 
to  his  men.  His  interview  in  his  cabin  with  his 
officers  was  an  interesting  one.  With  all  the  elo- 
quence of  which  he  was  a  master — and  he  was  able 
to  speak  convincingly  and  well  on  congenial  sub- 
jects— he  placed  before  them  the  possibilities  pre- 
sented, appealed  to  their  patriotism,  their  love  of 
fame,  and  as  a  last  resort  pointed  out  the  further 
monetary  advantage  of  another  rich  prize — lago's 
argument !  If  they  were  successful  in  taking  an- 
other frigate  they  would  shed  still  greater  luster 
upon  their  names,  and  put  money  in  their  pockets. 
The  officers,  however,  bluntly  refused  to  be  per- 


266  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

suacled.  They  emphasized  the  mutinous  and  dis- 
contented state  of  the  crews,  who  had  only  sailed 
under  Jones'  positive  promise  to  take  them  immedi- 
ately to  L'Orient ;  pointed  out  that  many  of  the  men 
had  not  proper  clothing  with  which  to  endure  the 
severe  winter  weather,  and  that  they  themselves 
were  in  a  destitute  condition. 

Their  natural  reluctance  to  fall  in  with  his  plans 
infuriated  Jones.  Rising  from  the  chair  upon  which 
he  had  been  sitting,  with  an  emphatic  stamp  of  his 
foot  he  dismissed  them  with  a  sneering  contempt  in 
the  following  words : 

"  I  do  not  want  your  advice,  neither  did  I  send 
.for  you  to  comply  with  your  wishes,  but  only  by 
way  of  paying  you  a  compliment,  which  was  more 
than  you  deserve  by  your  opposition.  Therefore, 
you  know  my  mind ;  go  to  your  duty,  each  one  of 
you,  and  let  me  hear  no  more  grumbling !  " 

The  Alliance  cruised  for  some  days  to  the  west- 
ward of  Cape  Finisterre,  but,  as  the  quarreling  be- 
tween the  two  crews  ran  higher  than  ever,  and  as 
Jones  had  failed  to  keep  his  promise,  thus  adding  to 
their  discontent,  when  they  fell  in  with  the  Amer- 
ican ship  Livingstone,  laden  with  a  valuable  cargo 
of  tobacco,  Jones  gave  over  his  attempt,  and  de- 
cided to  convoy  her  to  L'Orient,  where  he  arrived 
on  the  loth  of  February,  1780.  That  he  should 
gravely  have  contemplated  action  with  a  British 
frigate  with  his  ill-conditioned  ship  and  mutinous 
crew  shows  the  confidence  he  felt  in  his  own  abil- 
ity. I  have  no  doubt  that,  unprepared  as  she 


SAFE   AT   LAST.  267 

was,  if  the  Alliance  had  fallen  in  with  an  Eng- 
lish ship  Jones  would  have  been  able  to  persuade 
his  men  to  action,  and  with  anything  like  an 
equal  force  the  results  would  have  been  satis- 
factory. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

HONORS  AND  REWARDS QUARREL  WITH  LANDAIS — 

RELINQUISHES    THE   ALLIANCE. 

THE  tremendous  nervous  strain  which  Jones  had 
undergone,  the  constant  labor  and  exposure  neces- 
sitated by  the  circumstances  of  his  hard  cruising 
and  righting,  and  the  recent  exposure  in  the  severe 
winter  weather  had  broken  down  his  health.  His 
spirit  had  outpaced  his  body,  and  in  a  very  ill  and 
weak  condition,  with  his  eyes  so  inflamed  that  he 
was  almost  blinded,  he  went  on  shore  in  search 
of  rest.  Meanwhile  preparations  were  made  thor- 
oughly to  overhaul  the  Alliance  and  load  her  with 
a  large  quantity  of  valuable  and  much-needed  mili- 
tary supplies  which  had  been  purchased  for  the 
army  of  the  United  States,  among  them  the  bat- 
tery which  had  been  cast  for  the  Bon  Homme 
Richard,  which  had  arrived  after  her  departure. 

Hard  by  the  Alliance  in  the  harbor  lay  the  hand- 
some Serapis.  With  perfectly  natural  feelings 
Jones  longed  to  get  possession  of  her  again.  He 
wrote  immediately  to  Franklin,  detailing  the  repairs 
necessary  to  put  the  Alliance  in  shape,  which  were 
very  extensive  and  correspondingly  expensive,  and 
asked  that  he  might  have  leave  to  sheath  the  Alli- 
ance with  copper,  and  that  the  Serapis  might  be 
268 


FRANKLIN   ENJOINS   ECONOMY.  269 

purchased  and  turned  over  to  him.  He  hoped  that 
the  repairs  to  the  Alliance  might  be  made  by  the 
French  Government,  perhaps  that  they  would  also 
give  him  the  Serapis.  As  the  condition  of  the  Alli- 
ance had  been  justly  attributed  by  Jones  to  the  neg- 
ligence and  incompetence  of  Landais,  and  not  to 
any  accident  of  the  cruise  under  the  auspices  of 
France,  there  did  not  seem  to  be  any  good  reason 
for  having  the  ship  repaired  at  the  expense  of  the 
French  Government.  Franklin  stated  that  the 
whole  expense  would  have  to  fall  upon  him,  and 
begged  him  in  touching  words  to  be  as  economical 
as  possible,  as  his  financial  resources,  as  always, 
were  limited.  For  the  same  reason  it  was  impos- 
sible to  secure  the  Serapis. 
He  says : 

"  I  therefore  beg  you  would  have  mercy  on  me ; 
put  me  to  as  little  charge  as  possible,  and  take  noth- 
ing that  you  can  possibly  do  without.  As  to  sheath- 
ing with  copper,  it  is  totally  out  of  the  question.  I 
am  not  authorized  to  do  it  if  I  had  money ;  and  I 
have  not  money  for  it  if  I  had  orders." 

As  the  demand  in  America  for  the  military  sup- 
plies which  Franklin  had  procured  was  pressing, 
Jones  was  ordered  to  hasten  the  repairs  to  the 
Alliance.  In  spite  of  Franklin's  strict  injunction 
to  economize,  Jones  proceeded  to  overhaul,  refit, 
and  remodel  entirely  the  frigate  in  accordance 
with  his  ideas  and  experience.  As  his  ideas  were 
excellent  and  his  experience  had  been  ample,  when 
the  repairs  had  been  completed  they  left  noth- 
ing to  be  desired.  But  the  bills  were  very  heavy. 


COMMODORE  PAUL 

Franklin  protested,  but  paid.  As  a  matter  of  fact, 
it  must  be  admitted  Jones  did  not  stint  himself  when 
it  came  to  outfitting  a  ship — or  anything  else,  for 
that  matter.  His  experience  with  the  Ranger,  the 
Richard,  and  the  Alliance  had  naturally  disgusted 
him  with  inadequately  provided  ships  of  war.  The 
beautiful  little  boat  was  the  superior  of  any  of  her 
size  upon  the  ocean,  and  subsequently,  under  the 
command  of  Captain  John  Barry,  she  did  brilliant 
and  noteworthy  service.  If  it  had  not  been  for  Jones 
she  would  have  been  worthless. 

The  charge  of  extravagance,  however,  is  fairly 
substantiated.  Jones  was,  in  fact,  as  indifferent  in 
the  spending  of  other  people's  money  as  he  was  with 
his  own,  and  I  have  no  doubt  the  bills,  although  he 
paid  them,  almost  broke  the  harassed  commis- 
sioner's heart.  Jones,  however,  was  in  a  very  dif- 
ferent position  from  that  he  had  occupied  previ- 
ously. He  had  demonstrated  his  capacity  in  the 
most  unequivocal  manner.  He  was  not  a  man  to 
be  dealt  with  slightingly,  nor  did  Franklin,  who  un- 
doubtedly cherished  a  genuine  admiration  and  re- 
gard for  him,  which  the  sailor  fully  reciprocated  by 
an  enthusiastic  admiration  amounting  to  veneration, 
wish  to  do  anything  to  humiliate  him. 

While  the  repairs  were  progressing  the  financial 
status  of  the  crew  was  in  no  way  amended.  There 
was  no  money  forthcoming  to  them  on  the  score 
of  wages ;  the  sale  of  the  prizes  was  delayed,  and 
serious  differences  arose  between  the  agents  of  the 
crews,  de  Chaumont  as  representing  the  king,  and 
Jones  himself.  Finally,  in  order  to  further  the  set- 
tlement of  the  matter,  Jones  decided  to  go  to  Paris 


ARRIVAL   OF  ARTHUR   LEE.  2^1 

and  see  what  he  could  do  personally  to  hasten  the 
sale  of  the  prizes,  and  perhaps  secure  some  funds 
with  which  to  pay  the  wages  of  the  crews,  in  part 
at  least. 

Early  in  April,  therefore,  he  left  the  Alliance  at 
L'Orient  and  repaired  to  the  capital.  From  one 
point  of  view  it  was  an  unwise  thing  to  do,  for  he 
left  behind  him  a  discontented  and  mutinous  crew, 
which  only  his  own  indomitable  personality  had 
been  able  to  repress  and  control.  It  is  likely,  how- 
ever, that  affairs  at  L'Orient  would  have  remained 
in  statu  quo  had  it  not  been  for  the  advent  of  Arthur 
Lee.  This  gentleman  is  perhaps  the  only  member 
of  the  famous  family  whose  name  he  bore  upon 
whose  conduct  and  character  severe  judgment  must 
be  passed.  Jealous,  quarrelsome,  and  incompetent, 
his  blundering  attempts  at  diplomacy  had  worked 
more  harm  than  good  to  the  American  nation.  By 
his  vanity  and  indiscretion  he  had  continually 
thwarted  the  wise  plans  and  brilliant  policy  of 
Franklin,  with  whom  he  had  finally  embroiled  him- 
self to  such  an  extent  that  it  became  necessary  for 
him  to  return  home.  Not  only  had  he  lost  the 
esteem  of  Franklin,  but  through  his  petty  meanness 
he  had  also  forfeited  the  confidence  of  Congress, 
which  had  superseded  him  by  John  Jay  at  the  court 
of  Spain,  to  which  he  had  been  accredited  previ- 
ously. 

Franklin  desired  Jones  to  give  him  a  passage 
home  in  the  Alliance.  Jones  had  a  great  dislike  to 
his  proposed  passenger.  When  his  draft  upon  the 
commissioners  for  twenty-four  thousand  livres  had 
been  dishonored,  it  was  largely  through  the  influ- 


272  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

ence  of  Lee  that  the  money  had  been  refused  him. 
Lee  was  fully  acquainted  with  the  circumstances 
which  caused  Jones  to  apply,  and  he  might  have 
secured  payment.  At  least  that  was  the  opinion 
of  Jones.  With  his  usual  frankness,  Jones  had  not 
hesitated  to  express  his  opinion  to  Lee  in  a  very  tart 
letter,  which  had  not  improved  the  situation.  In 
the  face  of  the  request  of  Franklin,  Jones  had  no 
option  but  to  receive  Lee  and  his  suite  on  the 
Alliance.  He  objected,  however,  most  strenuously 
to  allowing  the  ex-commissioner  to  take  his  car- 
riage and  other  equipage  on  the  frigate,  stating  with 
entire  accuracy  that  articles  of  such  bulk  would 
take  up  much  room,  which  could  be  better  devoted 
to  other  and  more  important  freightage.  This, 
no  doubt,  further  incensed  Lee  against  Jones. 
He  was  ever  inclined  'to  put  his  personal  comfort 
before  the  welfare  of  his  country. 

Landais  had  been  summoned,  as  we  have  seen, 
to  Paris.  The  commissioners,  with  the  documents 
prepared  in  the  Texel  before  them,  had  discussed 
his  case,  and  had  decided  to  send  him  to  America 
for  trial.  Franklin,  who  had  not  yet  expressed  any 
public  judgment  in  the  premises,  though  his  private 
opinion  was  well  known,  had  presented  Landais 
with  a  sum  of  money  for  his  voyage  to  the  United 
States,  and  the  \vhole  correspondence,  including  the 
charges,  had  been  transmitted  to  Congress. 

Arthur  Lee,  with  his  usual  captious  spirit,  and 
inspired  by  his  hatred  of  Jones  and  the  desire  to 
disagree  with  Franklin  at  the  same  time,  had  dis- 
sented from  the  view  and  decision  of  his  colleagues. 
He  had  maintained  that  Landais  was  legally  en- 


LEE   AND   LANDAIS   MAKE   TROUBLE. 


273 


titled  to  continue  in  the  command  of  the  Alliance, 
and  that  Franklin  had  not  the  power  to  supersede 
him — a  contention  not  substantiated  by  the  facts, 
nor,  as  was  afterward  shown,  supported  by  Con- 
gress itself. 

When  Jones  went  to  Paris,  therefore,  Lee,  realiz- 
ing his  opportunity,  at  once  began  to.  foment  addi- 
tional disorder  in  the  already  demoralized  crew. 
Coincident  with  Jones'  departure,  Landais  also 
made  his  appearance.  Had  Lee  summoned  him? 
Lee  did  not  hesitate  to  express  the  opinion  to  that 
gentleman  himself,  his  officers,  and  crew,  that  Lan- 
dais was  legitimately  entitled  to  the  command  of  the 
Alliance,  and  could  not  be  removed  therefrom  ex- 
cept by  specific  direction  of  Congress.  Things, 
therefore,  developed  with  painful  rapidity  at  L'Ori- 
ent,  until  Landais  addressed  a  note  to  Franklin  de- 
manding that  he  be  reinstated  in  the  command  of 
the  Alliance — a  curious  procedure  for  a  man  who 
claimed  that  Franklin  was  without  power  to  dis- 
place him ! 

Meanwhile  Jones  was  having  a  brilliant  recep- 
tion in  France.  While  he  had  incurred  the  hostility 
of  the  French  naval  officers,  who  fancied  that  he  had 
deprived  them  of  commands  to  which  they  were 
better  entitled,  and  in  the  enjoyment  of  which  he 
had  gained  distinction  through  opportunities  which 
might  possibly  have  fallen  to  them  and  which  they 
might  have  embraced,  he  was  everywhere  received 
with  the  highest  honors,  as  well  by  the  court  as  the 
people.  To  the  populace,  indeed,  he  was  a  hero 
who  had  humbled  the  enemy  whom  they  hated  with 
the  characteristic  passion  of  Frenchmen.  Franklin 
19 


274  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

took  him  to  call  upon  his  old  tormentor,  the  dilatory 
de  Sartine,  and,  owing  perhaps  to  naval  prejudice, 
his  first  reception  was  extremely  cool ;  but,  as  it  be- 
came evident  that  he  was  a  popular  hero,  the  tone 
of  the  minister  was  lowered,  and  his  actions  were 
modified,  so  that  he  afterward  extended  him  a  warm 
welcome  and  professed  extreme  friendship  for  the 
commodore.  The  king  and  queen  accorded  him 
the  favor  of  an  audience,  and  his  majesty,  falling 
in  with  the  popular  current,  was  pleased  to  declare 
his  intention  of  presenting  him  with  a  magnificent 
gold-mounted  sword,  to  be  inscribed  with  the  fol- 
lowing flattering  motto : 

"VINDICATI    MARIS    LUDOVICUS    XVI.    REMUNE- 
RATOR   STRENUO   VINDICI."  * 

He  also  signified  his  royal  purpose,  should  the 
Congress  acquiesce  therein,  of  investing  Jones  with 
the  cross  of  the  Order  of  Military  Merit,  a  distinc- 
tion never  before  accorded  to  any  but  a  subject  of 
France,  and  only  awarded  for  heroic  conduct  or  con- 
spicuous and  brilliant  military  or  naval  services 
against  the  enemy.  Nothing  could  have  been  more 
grateful  to  a  man  of  Jones'  temperament  than  the 
appreciation  of  the  French  people,  and  these  evi- 
dences of  admiration  and  esteem  from  the  hand  of 
the  king.  On  his  previous  visit  to  Paris,  after  the 
capture  of  the  Drake,  he  had  been  made  much  of ; 
in  this  instance  his  reception  greatly  surpassed  his 
former  welcome.  He  became  the  lion  of  the  day, 

*  "  Louis  XVI,  the  rewarder,  to  the  mighty  deliverer,  for 
the  freedom  of  the  sea." 


HONORS   AND    REWARDS.  275 

the  attraction  of  the  hour.  Great  men  sought  his 
company,  and  held  themselves  honored  by  his 
friendship ;  while  the  fairest  of  the  ladies  of  the  gay 
court  were  proud  to  receive  the  attentions  of  the 
man  who  had  so  dramatically  conquered  the  hated 
English.  In  all  these  circumstances  he  bore  himself 
with  becoming  modesty.  On  one  occasion  he  was 
invited  to  the  queen's  box  at  the  opera.  When  he 
entered  the  theater  he  was  loudly  cheered,  and  at 
the  close  of  the  act  a  laurel  wreath  was  suspended 
over  his  head,  whereupon  he  changed  his  seat.  This 
natural  action  has  been  quaintly  commented  upon 
by  various  biographers,  and  the  statement  is  made 
that  for  many  years  it  was  held  up  before  the 
French  youth  as  an  exhibition  of  extraordinary 
modesty ! 

One  of  the  most  admirable  of  Jones'  traits  was 
a  chivalrous  devotion  to  women.  To  a  natural  grace 
of  manner  he  added  the  bold  directness  of  a  sailor, 
which  was  not  without  its  charm  to  the  beauties 
of  Versailles,  sated  with  the  usual  artificial  gallantry 
of  the  men  of  the  period.  Jones  spoke  French 
rather  well,  and  had  a  taste  for  music  and  poetry. 
There  were,  therefore,  many  who  did  not  disdain  to 
draw  the  "  sea  lion  "  in  their  train.  On  account  of 
the  favors  he  had  received  he  was  a  person  of  dis- 
tinction at  the  court.  Among  his  voluminous  cor- 
respondence which  has  been  preserved  are  numbers 
of  letters  to  and  from  different  women  of  rank  and 
station,  dating  from  this  period  and  from  his  pro- 
longed stay  in  Paris  after  the  war  had  terminated. 
Among  others,  he  corresponded  with  a  lady  who, 
after  the  romantic  fashion  of  the  time,  at  first  en- 


276  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

deavored  to  hide  her  identity  under  the  name  of 
Delia.  Between  Jones  and  Delia  there  seems  to 
have  sprung  up  a  genuine  passion,  for  the  letters 
on  both  sides  breathe  a  spirit  of  passionate,  heart- 
felt devotion.  It  has  been  discovered  that  Delia 
was  but  another  name  for  Madame  de  Telison,  a 
natural  daughter  of  Louis  XV,  with  whom  Jones 
frequently  corresponded  under  her  own  name,  and 
who  is  referred  to  in  his  biographies  as  Madame 
T ,  and  the  identification  is  definite  and  com- 
plete. He  was  catholic  in  his  affections,  however, 
for  he  by  no  means  confined  his  epistolary  rela- 
tions to  the  gentle  and  devoted  Madame  de  Telison. 

It  is  interesting  to  note  that  in  all  these  letters 
there  is  not  a  single  indelicate  or  ill-bred  allusion. 
That  is  what  would  be  expected  to-day,  but  when 
we  remember  that  so  great  an  authority  as  Robert 
Walpole  suggested  that  everybody  at  his  table 
should  "  talk  bawdy,"  as  being  the  only  subject 
every  one  could  understand,  the  significance  of  his 
clean  letters  is  apparent.  In  his  correspondence, 
except  in  the  case  of  Aimee  Adele  de  Telison,  he 
never  appears  to  have  passed  beyond  the  bounds 
of  romantic  friendship.  In  later  years,  however,  it 
is  possible  to  infer  from  his  letters  that  Madame  de 
Telison  bore  to  him  a  son,  whose  history  is  entire- 
ly unknown.  Among  others  who  honored  him  with 
their  friendship  were  three  women  of  high  rank, 
the  Duchess  de  Chartres,  Madame  d'Ormoy,  and 
the  Countess  de  Lavendahl,  who  painted  his  por- 
trait in  miniature. 

An  English  lady,  Miss  Edes,  sojourning  in 
France  at  this  time,  thus  refers  to  him  in  two  letters 


'AN   AGREEABLE   SEA   WOLF." 


277 


which    she    wrote    for   publication    in   the    English 
journals : 

"  The  famous  Paul  Jones  dines  and  sups  here 
often ;  he  is  a  smart  man  of  thirty-six,  speaks  but 
little  French,  appears  to  be  an  extraordinary  genius, 
a  poet  as  well  as  hero;  a  few  days  ago  he  wrote 
some  verses  extempore,  of  which  I  send  you  a  copy. 
He  is  greatly  admired  here,  especially  by  the  ladies, 
who  are  wild  for  love  of  him ;  but  he  adores  the 
Countess  of  Lavendahl,  who  has  honored  him  with 
every  mark  of  politeness  and  distinction. 

"  '  Insulted  freedom  bled  ;   I  felt  her  cause, 
And  drew  my  sword  to  vindicate  her  laws 
From  principle,  and  not  from  vain  applause. 
I've  done  my  best ;  self-interest  far  apart, 
And  self-reproach  a  stranger  to  my  heart. 
My  zeal  still  prompts,  ambitious  to  pursue 
The  foe,  ye  fair  !  of  liberty  and  you  ; 
Grateful  for  praise,  spontaneous  and  unbought, 
A  generous  people's  love  not  meanly  sought ; 
To  merit  this,  and  bend  the  knee  to  beauty, 
Shall  be  my  earliest  and  latest  duty.' 

"  Since  my  last,  Paul  Jones  drank  tea  and  supped 
here.  If  I  am  in  love  for  him,  for  love  I  may  die. 
I  have  as  many  rivals  as  there  are  ladies,  but  the 
most  formidable  is  still  Lady  Lavendahl,  who  pos- 
sesses all  his  heart.  This  lady  is  of  high  rank  and 
virtue,  very  sensible,  good-natured,  and  affable. 
Besides  this,  she  is  possessed  of  youth,  beauty,  and 
wit,  and  every  other  form  of  female  accomplishment. 
He  is  gone,  I  suppose,  for  America.  They  corre- 
spond, and  his  letters  are  replete  writh  elegance,  sen- 
timent, and  delicacy.  She  drew  his  picture,  a  strik- 


278  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

ing  likeness,  and  wrote  some  lines  under  it  which 
are  much  admired,  and  presented  it  to  him.  Since 
he  received  it  he  is,  like  a  second  Narcissus,  in  love 
with  his  own  resemblance ;  to  be  sure,  he  is  the 
most  agreeable  sea  wolf  one  would  wish  to  meet 
with." 

In  all  this,  however,  Jones  did  not  for  a  moment 
neglect  the  business  which  had  called  him  to  Paris. 
He  moved  heaven  and  earth  to  effect  the  sale  of 
the  prizes,  bringing  to  bear  all  his  personal  popu- 
larity and  making  use  of  his  new-found  friends,  both 
men  and  women,  to  accomplish  the  desired  results. 
In  all  his  attempts  he  was  zealously  supported  by 
Franklin,  who,  I  have  no  doubt,  greatly  enjoyed  the 
popularity  of  his  protege. 

Finally,  on  the  last  day  of  May,  having  received 
positive  assurance  that  the  prizes  would  be  sold  and 
distribution  made  immediately,  he  set  out  for  L'Ori- 
ent.  On  leaving  Paris  he  carried  with  him  a  per- 
sonal commendation  from  Franklin  and  a  letter 
from  de  Sartine  to  the  President  of  Congress,  as 
follows : 

"  PASSY,  June  /,  1780. 
"  Samuel  Hnntington,  Esq.,  President  of  Congress. 

"  SIR  :  Commodore  Jones,  who  by  his  bravery 
and  conduct  has  done  great  honour  to  the  American 
flag,  desires  to  have  that  also  of  presenting  a  line 
to  the  hands  of  your  Excellency.  I  cheerfully  com- 
ply with  his  request,  in  recommending  him  to  the 
notice  of  Congress,  and  to  your  Excellency's  pro- 
tection, though  his  actions  are  more  effectual  rec- 
ommendations, and  render  any  from  me  unneces- 


COMMENDED   TO   CONGRESS. 


279 


sary.  It  gives  me,  however,  an  opportunity  of 
shewing  my  readiness  to  do  justice  to  merit,  and  of 
professing  the  esteem  and  respect  with  which  I  am, 
etc.  B.  FRANKLIN." 

From  M.  de  Sartine  to  Mr.  Huntington,  Presi- 
dent of  the  Congress  of  the  United  States : 

"  VERSAILLES,  May  jo,  1780. 

"  Commodore  Paul  Jones,  after  having  shown  to 
all  Europe,  and  particularly  to  the  enemies  of 
France  and  the  United  States,  the  most  unques- 
tionable proofs  of  his  valor  and  talents,  is  about  re- 
turning to  America  to  give  an  account  to  Congress 
of  the  success  of  his  military  operations.  I  am 
convinced,  Sir,  that  the  reputation  he  has  so  justly 
acquired  will  precede  him,  and  that  the  recital  of  his 
actions  alone  will  suffice  to  prove  to  his  fellow 
citizens  that  his  abilities  are  equal  to  his  courage. 
But  the  king  has  thought  proper  to  add  his  suffrage 
and  attention  to  the  public  opinion.  He  has  ex- 
pressly charged  me  to  inform  you  how  perfectly  he 
is  satisfied  with  the  services  of  the  Commodore, 
persuaded  that  Congress  will  render  him  the  same 
justice.  He  has  offered,  as  a  proof  of  his  esteem,  to 
present  him  with  a  sword,  which  can  not  be  placed 
in  better  hands,  and  likewise  proposed  to  Congress 
to  decorate  this  brave  officer  with  the  cross  of  Mili- 
tary Merit.  His  Majesty  conceives  that  this  par- 
ticular distinction,  by  holding  forth  the  same  hon- 
ours to  the  two  nations,  united  by  the  same  inter- 
ests, will  be  looked  upon  as  one  tie  more  that  con- 
nects them,  and  will  support  that  emulation  which 
is  so  precious  to  the  common  cause.  If,  after  hav- 


28o  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

ing  approved  the  conduct  of  the  Commodore,  it 
should  be  thought  proper  to  give  him  the  command 
of  any  new  expedition  to  Europe,  His  Majesty  will 
receive  him  again  with  pleasure,  and  presumes  that 
Congress  will  oppose  nothing  that  may  be  judged 
expedient  to  secure  the  success  of  his  enterprises. 
My  personal  esteem  for  him  induces  me  to  recom- 
mend him  very  particularly  to  you,  Sir,  and  I  dare 
flatter  myself  that  the  welcome  he  will  receive  from 
Congress  and  you  will  warrant  the  sentiments  with 
which  he  has  inspired  me." 

While  all  this  had  been  going  on,  however, 
Franklin  had  been  having  serious  trouble  with  the 
men  of  the  Alliance.  On  the  I2th  of  April  the  offi- 
cers dispatched  a  letter  to  Franklin  demanding 
their  prize  money  and  wages.  Franklin  had  previ- 
ously advanced  them  twenty-four  thousand  livres, 
and  he  wrote  them  that  everything  was  being  done 
to  hasten  the  sale  of  the  prizes,  and  that  they  would 
have  to  be  content  with  what  he  had  given  them, 
and  receive  the  balance  when  they  reached  the 
United  States.  On  the  2Qth  of  May  Landais  wrote, 
repeating  his  application  of  the  I7th  of  March,  and 
inclosing  a  mutinous  letter  signed  by  one  hundred 
and  fifteen  of  the  crew  of  the  Alliance,  declaring 
that  they  would  not  raise  an  anchor  nor  sail  from 
L'Orient  till  they  had  six  months'  wages  paid  to 
them,  and  the  utmost  farthing  of  their  prize  money, 
including  that  for  the  ships  sent  into  Norway,  and 
until  their  legal  captain,  Pierre  Landais,  was  re- 
stored to  them. 

Landais  had  added  the  phrase  "  until  their  legal 


TROUBLE   ON   THE   ALLIANCE.  28 1 

captain,  P.  Landais,  is  restored  to  us,"  himself. 
With  this  letter  was  another  communication  from 
fourteen  of  the  original  officers  of  the  Alliance,  to 
the  effect  that  the  crew  were  in  favor  of  Landais, 
who  was  a  capable  officer,  whose  conduct  had  been 
misrepresented,  and  whom  they  considered  them- 
selves bound  to  obey  as  their  legal  captain.  These 
officers  can  not  be  relieved  of  a  large  share  of  the 
odium  attaching  to  the  conduct  of  the  Alliance  dur- 
ing the  battle  between  the  Richard  and  the  Serapis. 
The  reason  for  their  dislike  of  Jones  is  therefore  ap- 
parent. To  carry  out  their  designs  they  had  circu- 
lated among  the  crew  statements  to  the  effect  that 
Jones  had  received  the  prize  money  and  was  enjoy- 
ing himself  at  their  expense.  The  fine  Italian  hand 
of  Mr.  Lee  is  to  be  seen  in  the  documents  they  for- 
warded to  Franklin.  Franklin's  reply  to  this  dis- 
gracefully insubordinate  batch  of  letters  was  re- 
markable for  its  tact,  acumen,  and  good  sense. 
After  keenly  expressing  his  surprise  that  the  very 
officers  who  had  testified  against  Landais  a  short 
time  before,  and  whom  Landais  had  stated  were  all 
leagued  against  him,  were  now  desirous  of  being 
placed  again  under  his  command,  he  writes  as  fol- 
lows : 

"  I  have  related  exactly  to  Congress  the  manner 
of  his  [Landais']  leaving  the  ship,  and  though  I 
declined  any  judgment  of  his  maneuvers  in  the  fight, 
I  have  given  it  as  my  opinion,  after  examining  the 
affair,  that  it  was  not  at  all  likely  either  that  he 
should  have  given  orders  to  fire  into  the  Bon 
Homme  Richard,  or  that  his  officers  should  have 


2g2  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

obeyed  such  an  order  should  it  have  been  given 
them.  Thus  I  have  taken  what  care  I  could  of 
your  honour  in  that  particular.  You  will,  therefore, 
excuse  me  if  I  am  a  little  concerned  for  it  in  an- 
other. If  it  should  come  to  be  publicly  known  that 
you  had  the  strongest  aversion  to  Captain  Landais, 
who  has  used  you  basely,  and  that  it  is  only  since 
the  last  year's  cruise,  and  the  appointment  of  Com- 
modore Jones  to  the  command,  that  you  request  to 
be  again  under  your  old  captain,  I  fear  suspicions 
and  reflections  may  be  thrown  upon  you  by  the 
world,  as  if  this  change  of  sentiment  may  have 
arisen  from  your  observation  during  the  cruise,  that 
Captain  Jones  loved  close  fighting,*  but  that  Cap- 
tain Landais  was  skilful  in  keeping  out  of  harm's 
way ;  and  that  you,  therefore,  thought  yourself  safer 
with  the  latter.  For  myself,  I  believe  you  to  be 
brave  men  and  lovers  of  your  country  and  its  glori- 
ous cause ;  and  I  am  persuaded  you  have  only  been 
ill-advised  and  misled  by  the  artful  and  malicious 
representations  of  some  persons  I  guess  at.  Take 
in  good  part  this  counsel  from  an  old  man  who  is 
your  friend.  Go  home  peaceably  with  your  ship. 
Do  your  duty  faithfully  and  cheerfully.  Behave  re- 
spectfully to  your  commander,  and  I  am  persuaded 
he  will  do  the  same  to  you.  Thus  you  will  not 
only  be  happier  in  your  voyage,  but  recommend 
yourselves  to  the  future  favours  of  Congress  and  of 
your  country." 

At  the  same  time  he  specifically  directed  Lan- 
dais to  refrain  from  meddling  with  the  men  or  creat- 

*  Italics  mine. 


FRANKLIN'S   WISDOM   AND   FIRMNESS.      283 

ing  any  disturbance  on  the  Alliance  at  his  peril.  To 
this  letter  Landais  paid  no  attention.  This  was  the 
situation  when  Jones  reached  L'Orient.  Franklin 
wrote  him  concerning  the  letters  and  batch  of  docu- 
ments from  Landais  and  the  crew,  which  had  arrived 
after  his  departure,  and  advised  him  what  had  been 
done  in  consequence.  The  commissioner  had  pro- 
cured an  imperative  order  to  the  authorities  at 
L'Orient  for  the  arrest  of  Landais,  who  was  to  be 
tried  for  his  life  as  an  emigrant  without  the  king's 
permission.  Franklin  also  directed  Jones  to  with- 
hold from  the  signers  of  the  mutinous  letter  any 
portion  of  the  money  he  had  advanced  on  account 
of  the  prizes,  and  he  added  the  firm  and  decided  in- 
junction that  if  any  one  was  not  willing  to  trust  his 
country  to  see  justice  done  him  he  should  be  put 
ashore  at  his  own  charges  to  await  the  sale  of  the 
prizes. 

The  situation  was  most  critical,  and  that  Frank- 
lin appreciated  it  fully  is  shown  by  the  following 
citation  from  one  of  his  letters  to  Jones : 

"...  You  are  likely  to  have  great  trouble.  I 
wish  you  well  through  it.  You  have  shown  your 
abilities  in  fighting ;  you  have  now  an  opportunity  of 
showing  the  other  necessary  part  in  the  character 
of  a  great  chief,  your  abilities  in  policy." 

Before  this  letter  was  received,  however,  mat- 
ters had  risen  to  a  climax,  which  resulted  in  the 
ejection  of  Jones  and  the  assumption  of  the  com- 
mand by  Landais.  Immediately  he  arrived  at 
L'Orient,  Jones  hastened  to  get  ready  for  leaving. 
The  Ariel,  a  small  ship  of  twenty  guns,  had  been 


284  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

loaned  by  the  French  Government  to  carry  such 
supplies  as  could  not  be  taken  on  the  -Alliance. 
Several  American  vessels  with  valuable  cargoes 
were  awaiting  his  departure  also,  to  sail  under  his 
convoy. 

Jones  had  gone  on  board  the  Alliance  as  usual, 
as  his  duty  demanded,  and  had  been  received 
respectfully  and  his  orders  promptly  obeyed.  On 
the  morning  of  the  13th  of  June,  being  now  for  the 
first  time  informed  of  the  mutinous  action  of  the 
crew  and  the  letters  to  Franklin,  he  mustered  the 
crew  and  caused  his  commission  and  Franklin's 
first  order  to  him  to  take  command  of  the  ship  in 
the  Texel,  and  his  last  one,  to  carry  her  to  Phila- 
delphia, to  be  read  to  the  men.  He  then  addressed 
the  seamen,  pointing  out  to  them  the  obligations 
they  had  assumed,  the  consequences  of  a  refusal 
to  obey  him  on  their  part,  and  urged  them  to  a 
faithful  performance  of  their  duty.  He  asked  them, 
if  any  one  had  any  complaints  to  make  against  him, 
that  they  be  made  now.  No  reply  was  made  to  this 
address,  and  no  complaints  were  brought  forward. 
The  men  were  then  dismissed  to  their  stations. 

Shortly  after  this  incident  Jones  went  ashore. 
Landais  was  advised  of  the  whole  situation  imme- 
diately, and  sent  a  letter  to  Degges,  the  first  lieu- 
tenant, ordering  him  to  assume  the  command  of 
the  ship  and  retain  it  in  the  face  of  Jones  or  any  one 
else  until  Landais  should  receive  an  answer  to  his 
demand  to  Franklin  to  be  replaced  in  the  command 
of  the  Alliance.  When  he  received  this  order,  Lan- 
dais stated  that  he  would  at  once  come  on  board  and 
take  over  the  ship.  Degges  mustered  the  crew 


LANDAIS   SEIZES   THE   ALLIANCE.  285 

again  and  read  this  letter.  The  adroit  suggestions 
of  Mr.  Lee  and  the  insinuations  as  to  Jones'  alleged 
betrayal  of  their  interests  by  making  off  with  the 
prize  money  had  so  worked  on  the  feelings  of  the 
men  that  they  at  once  declared  for  Landais,  who, 
on  being  notified,  promptly  repaired  to  the  ship 
and  formally  assumed  command. 

Dale  and  the  officers  of  the  Richard  on  the  Alli- 
ance, wrho  had  not  been  aware  of  these  last  proceed- 
ings, for  they  had  been  adroitly  timed  for  their  din- 
ner hour  when  they  were  below,  were  apprised  of 
Landais'  arrival  by  the  cheering  on  deck.  They  pro- 
tested against  his  assuming  command,  and  were  all 
sent  ashore  without  ceremony.  Mr.  Lee  seems  to 
have  suggested  and  approved  of  the  action  of  Lan- 
dais ;  indeed,  without  his  sanction  the  latter  would 
never  have  dared  to  take  command  of  the  ship. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  same  day  Jones  dis- 
patched a  letter  to  Franklin  by  express,  relating 
the  circumstances,  and  then  immediately  followed  in 
person,  which  was  an  unnecessary  thing  to  do.  On 
his  arrival  at  Paris  he  found  that  peremptory  orders 
had  already  been  sent  post  haste  to  L'Orient  to  de- 
tain forcibly  the  Alliance,  and  reiterating  the  com- 
mand to  arrest  Landais.  Franklin,  appreciating  the 
meddling  of  Lee,  withdrew  his  request  to  Jones  to 
receive  him  as  a  passenger,  and  stated  that  he  might 
return  to  America  in  some  of  the  other  ships  going 
home  under  the  convoy  of  the  Alliance.  Finding 
nothing  more  to  be  done,  after  staying  but  two  days, 
Jones  returned  to  L'Orient  as  quickly  as  possible. 
He  arrived  on  the  morning  of  the  2Oth  of  June,  hav- 
ing been  absent  six  days. 


286  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

During  this  time  the  Alliance  had  been  warped 
out  of  the  inner  roads  into  the  narrow  strait  called 
Port  Louis,  which  was  inclosed  by  rocks  and  com- 
manded by  batteries,  which  she  would  have  to  pass 
before  she  could  reach  the  outer  roads  of  Groix. 
The  peremptory  orders  to  stop  the  ship  had  not  ar- 
rived, but  the  commander  of  the  port  under  his  pre- 
vious orders  had  caused  a  barrier  to  be  drawn  across 
the  narrow  strait  of  Port  Louis,  and  had  ordered 
the  forts  to  sink  the  frigate  if  she  attempted  to  pass 
out.  When  Jones  arrived,  a  boat  was  sent  off  to 
the  ship  by  the  port  officer,  carrying  the  king's 
order  for  the  arrest  of  Landais.  He  positively  re- 
fused to  surrender  himself.  Franklin's  latest  orders 
to  Landais  and  the  officers  and  men  were  then  de- 
livered, and  were  treated  with  equal  contempt. 

All  this  was  another  evidence  of  Landais'  folly, 
for  the  Alliance  was  completely  in  Jones'  power. 
He  had  but  to  give  the  word  to  have  caused  the  bat- 
teries to  open  fire  and  sink  her.  She  could  neither 
have  escaped  nor  made  adequate  reply.  Indeed,  it 
is  probable,  from  the  character  of  her  captain,  offi- 
cers, and  crew,  that  she  would  have  made  little  or 
no  fight.  But,  according  to  Jones'  specific  state- 
ment, for  France,  the  avowed  ally  of  America,  to 
have  opened  fire  upon  an  American  ship,  and  to 
have  killed  and  wounded  American  sailors,  would 
have  been  a  terrible  misfortune,  a  thing  greatly  to 
be  deplored,  and  to  be  avoided  if  possible,  lest  the 
present  friendly  relations  between  the  two  countries 
should  be  impaired  by  this  action.  The  aid  of 
France  was  vital  to  the  American  cause  at  this 
juncture,  and  it  was  patent  that  every  effort  should 


LANDAIS   DEFIES   THE   COMMODORE.        287 

be  made  to  promote  harmony  rather  than  sow  dis- 
cord ;  therefore  Jones  reluctantly  requested  the  com- 
mander to  secure  his  batteries,  open  the  barrier, 
and  allow  the  Alliance  to  get  through  the  strait.  The 
French  officers  accordingly,  in  the  absence  of  other 
orders,  stopped  the  preparations  they  had  made  to 
detain  the  frigate,  and  expressed  their  admiration 
for  the  magnanimity  of  Jones  in  allowing  the  Alli- 
ance to  go  free.  As  soon  as  he  received  permission, 
Landais  warped  the  Alliance  through  the  passage 
between  the  rocks  and  anchored  in  Groix  roads. 
Safe  out  of  harm's  way,  he  had  reached  a  position 
from  which  he  really  could  defy  Jones  and  France  at 
last,  and  defy  them  he  did,  more  boldly  than  ever. 

It  is  impossible  entirely  to  approve  of  Jones' 
conduct  in  this  complicated  affair.  He  might  have 
gone  on  board  the  Alliance  the  day  of  the  outbreak 
and  confronted  Landais.  His  own  personality  was 
so  strong  that  it  seems  probable  he  could  have  re- 
gained possession  of  the  ship  in  despite  of  anything 
the  weak  Landais  could  say  or  do.  However,  if 
the  spirit  of  the  men  had  been  so  turned  against  him 
that  in  his  judgment  this  would  have  been  imprac- 
ticable, he  certainly  had  the  situation  entirely  in 
his  own  hands  when  the  Alliance  lay  under  the  guns 
of  the  batteries.  It  was  not  necessary  for  the  bat- 
teries to  open  fire.  If  he  had  simply  kept  the  pass 
closed  Landais  would  have  been  unable  to  get  away, 
and  it  is  difficult  to  see  how  he  could  have  avoided 
surrendering  himself  and  yielding  up  his  ship 
eventually.  All  that  would  have  been  necessary  for 
Jones  to  do  would  be  to  have  patience ;  that  was  a 
thing,  however,  of  which  he  had  but  little  through- 


288  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

out  his  life.  If  he  did  not  desire  to  wait,  he  could 
have  opened  fire  upon  the  ship,  taking  the  risk  of 
a  rupture,  or  allowing  the  blame,  if  any  arose,  to  fall 
upon  those  who  had  put  him  in  command  of  the 
Alliance  originally,  and  had  continued  him  therein. 
I  venture  to  surmise  that  the  first  broadside  would 
have  brought  down  the  flag  of  the  Alliance.  In  this 
action  he  would  have  been  entirely  within  his  rights. 
If  Jones  really  wanted  her,  he  could  have  easily  se- 
cured possession  of  the  ship. 

Instead  of  doing  any  of  these  things,  he  let  Lan- 
dais  and  the  Alliance  go.  For  this  he  is  distinctly 
censurable.  It  is,  perhaps,  not  difficult  to  see  why 
he  permitted  her  to  escape.  I  have  no  doubt  he 
loathed  the  officers  and  men  upon  her.  He  was 
probably  sick  of  the  sight  of  her.  He  could  con- 
template with  no  satisfaction  whatever  a  cruise  upon 
her,  especially  with  Arthur  Lee  as  a  passenger,  and 
he  was  a  gentleman  whom  it  would  have  been  diffi- 
cult to  dispose  of. 

There  was,  it  has  been  surmised,  still  another 
and  more  pertinent  reason.  The  Serapis  was  still  in 
the  harbor.  She  had  just  been  purchased  by  the 
king.  Jones'  desire  for  her  was  as  strong  as  ever — 
stronger,  if  anything.  Upward  of  five  hundred  tons 
of  public  stores  and  munitions  of  war  still  remained 
to  be  taken  to  America.  The  Ariel  could  not  begin 
to  carry  it  all.  His  dream  was  to  beg  or  borrow 
the  Serapis,  which,  in  conjunction  with  the  Ariel, 
should  transport  the  stores  to  the  United  States,  and 
then  be  refitted  for  warlike  cruising  under  his  com- 
mand. If  he  retained  the  Alliance  this  hope  would 
vanish.  When  the  Alliance  was  warped  out  of  the 


THE   ALLIANCE   DEPARTS.  289 

harbor  he  promptly  wrote  to  Franklin  suggesting 
this  plan.  Meanwhile,  he  kept  up  a  hot  fire  of  orders 
and  letters  upon  Landais,  who,  being  now  out  of 
his  power,  treated  his  communications  with  silent 
contempt.  When  Jones  directed  that  his  personal 
baggage  be  sent  off  from  the  Alliance,  Landais  sent 
it  to  him  in  disgraceful  condition,  trunks  broken 
open,  papers  scattered,  and  much  of  his  private 
property  missing. 

•  On  the  28th  he  wrote  to  Landais  ordering  him 
not  to  sail  without  his  permission,  and  directing  him 
to  send  eighty  of  his  best  seamen  riggers  to  assist 
in  equipping  the  Ariel.  Landais  sent  him  twenty- 
two  people,  of  whom  he  wished  to  be  rid,  with  an 
insolent  note.  When  Jones  wrote  to  him  for  the 
balance  of  the  men  he  had  ordered,  Landais  would 
not  allow  the  officer  carrying  the  order  to  come  on 
board.  A  few  days  after  this  he  sailed  for  America, 
with  many  of  the  men  of  the  Bon  Homme  Rich- 
ard, who  still  adhered  to  Jones,  and  who  refused  to 
assist  him  in  getting  the  ship  under  way,  in  irons  in 
the  hold. 

To  close  a  troublesome  subject,  it  may  be  stated 
that  the  Alliance  reached  Boston  in  August.  The 
peculiar  conduct  of  Landais  on  this  cruise  so 
alarmed  the  officers  and  jeopardized  the  safety  of 
the  ship,  that  by  the  advice  of  the  meddlesome  Lee 
— who  was  in  this  single  instance  justified  in  his 
suggestions — he  was  summarily  deprived  of  the 
command  of  the  ship  on  the  plea  of  insanity,  and 
kept  closely  confined  till  they  reached  Boston.  No 
one  was  more  incensed  against  him  than  his  whilom 
upholder  and  defender,  Lee.  Landais  was  formally 

20 


290  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

tried  by  court-martial  when  he  arrived  in  the  United 
States  and  dismissed  the  service.  He  got  off  lightly. 
He  should  have  been  hanged  from  the  yardarm  of 
his  own  ship  as  an  example  and  a  warning  to  muti- 
nous traitors. 


CHAPTER  XV. 

THE    CRUISE    OF   THE    ARIEL. 

EARLY  in  the  month  of  July  Jones  received  the 
sword  which  had  been  bestowed  upon  him  by  the 
king.  He  commented  enthusiastically  upon  its 
beauty  and  its  value,  saying  that  it  had  cost  twenty- 
four  hundred  dollars — a  large  sum  for  that  day. 
The  month  was  passed  in  preparing  the  Ariel  for  de- 
parture, and  in  a  vigorous  correspondence  with 
Franklin  and  his  friends,  feminine  and  otherwise. 
On  the  2d  of  August,  in  a  note  to  the  Prime  Min- 
ister, the  Count  de  Vergennes,  Jones  informed  him 
that  he  was  nearly  ready  to  sail.  The  last  of  July 
Franklin  had  sent  him  his  final  dispatches  with  the 
Count  de  Vauban,  who  expected  to  sail  with  him, 
but  for  unexplained  reasons  Jones  did  not  take 
his  departure  until  the  4th  of  September,  when  the 
Ariel  was  warped  out  to  the  open  roads  of  Groix. 
From  the  4th  of  September  to  the  7th  of  October 
he  was  detained,  partly  by  contrary  winds  and  partly 
by  a  rumor,  to  which,  perhaps,  he  should  not  have 
given  credence,  that  further  dispatches  were  to  be 
sent  to  him.  On  the  7th  of  October,  at  two  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  he  weighed  anchor  and  put  to 
sea,  convoying  three  merchant  ships.  The  wind, 

291 


292  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

being  from  the  north-north.west,  blew  fair  for  their 
departure,  and  the  weather  was  mild  and  pleasant. 

The  next  morning  the  wind  shifted  and  came  in 
violent  squalls  from  the  southward.  The  ship  was 
not  yet  clear  of  the  land.  The  island  of  Groix  lay 
about  fifteen  miles  to  the  northeastward,  and,  as  the 
weather  became  very  thick  and  the  wind  increased 
until  it  was  blowing  a  tremendous  gale,  they  soon 
lost  sight  of  the  shore  to  the  leeward.  In  spite  of 
their  efforts,  they  were  unable  to  make  any  headway 
against  the  storm,  and  were  accordingly  carried 
down  toward  the  Penmarque  Rocks,  a  series  of 
sharp,  low  reefs,  jagged  needles  of  the  sea,  terminat- 
ing the  southeastern  extremity  of  the  peninsula  of 
Brittany,  among  the  most  dangerous  in  the  world. 
The  ship  was  in  that  position  above  all  others 
dreaded  by  the  mariner — drifting  upon  a  lee  shore 
in  a  gale  of  wind.  The  Ariel  had  been  put  under 
close-reefed  fore  and  main  sails,  and  her  head  laid  to 
the  northwest  in  the  hope  that  she  might  stretch 
along  and  clear  the  reefs ;  but  the  wind,  increasing 
to  a  perfect  hurricane,  in  the  language  of  Mackenzie, 
"  smothered  "  the  ship,  at  last  obliging  Jonec  to  furl 
the  courses  and  prevented  him  from  showing  even 
a  storm  staysail. 

In  the  report  of  the  officers  it  is  stated  that  the 
storm  had  become  so  violent  that  "  the  lee  fore 
yardarm  was  frequently  under  water ;  the  lee  gang- 
way was  laid  entirely  under  water,  and  the  lee  side 
of  the  waist  was  full."  The  water  in  the  hold  flowed 
into  the  cockpit,  notwithstanding  the  utmost  efforts 
of  the  chain  pumps.  The  ship  was  very  heavy  laden, 
and  lay  deep  in  the  water,  dipping  her  yardarms  with 


A   TERRIFIC   STORM. 


293 


every  roll.  As  the  tempest  rose  in  violence  it  be- 
came impossible  to  tell  just  where  they  were,  as  the 
murky  darkness  of  the  s,torm  hid  every  landmark. 
It  was  evident,  however,  from  an  inspection  of  the 
compass  that  they  were  still  drifting  toward  the 
shore.  This  fact  was  confirmed  by  the  rapid  shoal- 
ing of  the  water,  a  fact  Jones  established  by  person- 
ally taking  successive  casts  with  the  hand  lead. 
There  was  no  room  to  veer  and  get  the  ship  headed 
the  other  way.  If  there  had  been,  the  result  would 
probably  have  been  no  different.  In  the  face  of 
such  a  storm  she  would  have  continued  to  drift  to- 
ward the  reef.  Their  progress  to  leeward  was  fright- 
fully rapid.  The  ship  was  leaking  badly,  and  one 
of  the  chain  pumps  had  become  choked  and  refused 
to  work.  Destruction  seemed  inevitable.  In  all  his 
varied  experiences  Jones  had  seen  nothing  like  the 
storm.  In  his  report  he  says  that  never  before  did 
he  fully  conceive  the  awful  majesty  of  a  shipwreck. 
In  their  distress,  as  a  last  resort,  he  determined  to 
anchor. 

.A  hasty  consultation  was  had  among  the  offi- 
cers on  the  quarter-deck,  and  this  desperate  resort 
was  agreed  upon.  At  eleven  o'clock  in  the  morn- 
ing the  best  bower  anchor  w?as  let  go  with  thirty 
fathoms  of  cable.  The  effect  was  not  perceptible. 
The  ship  was  not  brought  to,  and  continued  to  drift 
broadside  on  toward  the  land  in  the  trough  of  the 
sea.  She  dragged  her  anchor  as  if  it  had  been  a 
straw.  Two  other  cables  were  spliced  on  and  veered 
out.  Still  she  drove  on.  The  pressure  of  the  gale 
upon  the  bare  spars  was  tremendous.  The  wind 
roared  through  the  top-hamper  with  amazing  ve- 


294  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

locity.  The  masts  quivered  and  buckled  under  the 
awful  strain  to  which  they  were  subjected;  the 
standing  rigging  to  windward  stood  out  as  taut  and 
rigid  as  if  it  had  been  cut  from  bars  of  steel.  As  the 
frigate  lay  in  the  trough  of  the  sea  the  mighty 
waves  tossed  her  about  like  a  cockboat.  Broad 
sheets  of  foam  swept  over  the  deck,  washing  away 
everything  not  tightly  secured.  To  relieve  the  pres- 
sure and  get  the  ship  to  ride  to  her  anchor,  Jones 
now  ordered  the  weather  shrouds  of  the  foremast 
to  be  cut,  and  the  wind  instantly  snapped  off  the 
mast  above  the  deck  ;  with  all  its  weight  of  spars  and 
rigging  it  fell  to  leeward  and  carried  away  the  other 
bower  anchor  and  a  kedge  anchor,  and  smashed 
up  the  head  badly. 

This  afforded  some  relief,  for  immediately  after 
the  anchor  took  hold  and  the  ship  gradually  swung 
head  to  the  wind  at  last.  Her  drift  toward  the  rocks 
was  not  entirely  checked,  but  while  they  were 
hesitating  as  to  what  to  do  next,  the  mainmast,  the 
heel  of  which  had  been  jerked  out  of  its  step  by  the 
violent  motion  of  the  ship,  so  that  it  had  been  vi- 
brating to  and  fro  like  a  smitten  reed,  parted  just 
where  it  entered  the  main  deck.  The  wind  hurled 
the  immense  mass  of  timber  and  cordage  aft,  where 
it  fell  across  the  decks,  carrying  with  it  the  mizzen- 
mast,  smashing  the  lee  quarter  gallery,  and  gener- 
ally wrecking  the  after  part  of  the  vessel.  The  ship 
was  thus  stripped  of  her  spars  except  the  bowsprit, 
and  they  could  do  no  more.  If  she  did  not  bring  to 
her  anchor  and  cease  her  drag  toward  the  rocks, 
over  which  the  breakers  could  now  be  seen  crashing 
w?ith  terrible  force,  and  with  a  roar  heard  above  the 


IN   GOD'S    HANDS. 


295 


mad  noises  of  the  tempest,  they  were  lost.  They 
hastily  cleared  the  wreck  as  they  were  able,  letting  it 
drift  to  leeward,  and  waited  with  still  hearts  and 
bated  breaths  for  the  next  happening.  No  mere 
seamanship,  no  human  skill  could  save  them  now. 
They  were  in  God's  hands.  Since  their  other  an- 
chor had  been  lost  by  the  fall  of  the  foremast,  if 
their  present  anchor  gave  way  they  were  helpless. 
Fortunately  the  stripped  ship,  relieved  of  the  tre- 
mendous pressure  of  the  wind  upon  her  top-hamper, 
at  last  rode  to  her  anchor,  and  her  drift  on  the  rocks 
was  stopped.  For  the  present  they  were  saved. 
They  could  do  nothing  now  but  wait  and  trust  to 
the  strength  of  the  iron  fluke  and  the  hempen 
cable.  Fortunately,  both  held. 

For  two  days  and  three  nights  the  Ariel  swung 
to  that  single  anchor,  and  passively  endured  the  tre- 
mendous buffeting  of  wind  and  waves  within  a  short 
distance  of  the  mighty  reefs  upon  which,  if  she  had 
struck,  every  soul  on  board  must  have  perished. 
For  the  greater  part  of  this  time  the  motion  of 
the  mastless  ship  was  so  violent  that  the  most 
experienced  seaman  could  not  keep  his  legs  upon 
the  deck.  On  the  I2th  the  gale  had  sufficiently 
moderated  to  permit  the  crew  to  erect  jury  masts 
under  which  they  could  regain  the  harbor.  The 
cable  was  hove  short,  but  the  anchor  could  not  be 
weighed,  as  it  was  probably  caught  upon  a  rock. 
Indeed,  nothing  but  a  rock  hold  would  have 
saved  them;  so  the  cable  was  cut,  and  the  bat- 
tered Ariel  limped  back  to  L'Orient,  which  she 
reached  on  the  I3th  of  October.  The  gale  was  one 
of  the  most  severe  with  which  that  storm-bound 


296  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

coast  had  ever  been  visited  within  the  memory 
of  man.  The  whole  shore  was  strewed  with 
wrecks  and  the  bodies  of  drowned  men.  The 
merchant  ships  of  the  convoy  were  lost,  with  hun- 
dreds of  other  vessels.  That  the  Ariel,  in  the  most 
dangerous  position  which  could  possibly  have  been 
imagined  even,  escaped  without  loss  of  life  was  due 
to  the  Providence  of  God  and  the  brilliant  seaman- 
ship of  her  captain.  Long  afterward  Richard  Daie 
wrote  thus  of  his  commander's  conduct  in  these 
trying  circumstances : 

"  Never  saw  I  such  coolness  and  readiness  in 
such  frightful  circumstances  as  Paul  Jones  showed 
in  the  nights  and  days  when  we  lay  off  the  Pen- 
marques,  expecting  every  moment  to  be  our  last; 
and  the  danger  was  greater  even  than  we  were  in 
when  the  Bon  Homme  Richard  fought  the  Serapis." 

Two  months  were  required  to  put  the  Ariel  in 
shape  for  sea  once  more.  All  the  arms  which  she 
was  carrying  out  for  the  use  of  the  army  had  been 
so  damaged  by  water  as  to  be  useless.  They  were 
left  behind  and  their  place  supplied  by  other  cargo. 
During  this  interval,  when  not  occupied  in  superin- 
tending the  repairs  to  the  ship,  Jones  amused  him- 
self with  his  usual  prolific  correspondence.  He  had 
also  a  spirited  encounter  with  one  Thomas  Truxtun, 
afterward  the  distinguished  naval  officer,  at  that 
time  master  of  a  privateer  called  the  Independence. 
Truxtun  entered  the  harbor  of  L'Orient  flying  a 
pennant,  the  use  of  which  was  restricted  by  act  of 
Congress  to  regularly  commissioned  vessels  of  war, 
except  in  the  case  of  privateers  cruising  alone.  A 


TRUXTUN    RECEIVES   A   LESSON. 


297 


sharp  correspondence  was  carried  on  between  Jones 
and  Truxtun,  who  was  a  mere  boy  at  the  time. 
Truxtun  at  first  refused  to  haul  down  the  offending 
pennant,  but  was  finally  induced  to  do  so  by  Richard 
Dale  and  two  heavily  armed  boats'  crews  from  the 
Ariel.  Jones  was  not  to  be  trifled  with,  and  Trux- 
tun received  a  good  lesson  in  subordination  and 
obedience  to  law — always  of  value  to  a  privateer.* 

While  the  Ariel  was  being  refitted,  Jones,  with 
his  usual  longing  for  a  first-class  ship  of  war — a 
thing  he  never  enjoyed  during  the  whole  course  of 
his  life — through  some  influential  friends  made  an 
attempt  to  get  the  French  Government  to  lend  him 
the  new  and  handsome  frigate  Terpsichore,  but  his 
request,  as  usual,  was  not  complied  with.  Just  be- 
fore the  Ariel  sailed,  Jones  gave  a  grand  entertain- 
ment on  board  of  her,  to  which  he  invited  all  his 
friends,  which  closed  with  an  exercise  at  general 
quarters,  followed  by  a  representation  of  battle, 
which  greatly  alarmed  his  fair  visitors. 

On  the  1 8th  of  December  he  took  his  departure 
once  more.  His  last  letters  to  Madame  d'Ormoy 
are  very  characteristic  of  Jones  in  his  capacity  as  a 
squire  of  dames,  and  well  indicate  his  feelings  at  this 
time: 

"  I  can  not  leave  France  without  expressing  how 
much  I  feel  myself  honoured  and  obliged  by  the 

*  Evidently  Truxtun  learned  the  lesson  well,  for  in 
the  war  with  France  he  became  one  of  the  sternest  and  most 
severe  disciplinarians  in  the  naval  service,  in  spite  of  which 
his  crews  adored  him.  See  my  books,  Reuben  James,  A 
Hero  of  the  Forecastle  ;  and  American  Fights  and  Fighters. 


298  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

generous  attention  that  you  have  shown  to- my  repu- 
tation in  your  journal.  I  will  ever  have  the  most 
ardent  desire  to  merit  the  spontaneous  praise  of 
beauty  and  her  pen ;  and  it  is  impossible  to  be  more 
grateful  than  I  am  for  the  very  polite  attentions  I 
received  at  Paris  and  Versailles.  My  particular 
thanks  are  due  to  you,  madam,  for  the  personal 
proofs  I  have  received  of  your  esteem  and  friend- 
ship, and  for  the  happiness  you  procured  me  in  the 
society  of  the  charming  countess,  and  other  ladies 
and  gentlemen  of  your  circle.  But  I  have  a  favour 
to  ask  of  you,  madam,  which  I  hope  you  will  grant 
me.  You  tell  me  in  your  letter  that  the  inkstand  I 
had  the  honour  to  present  to  you,  as  a  small  token 
of  my  esteem,  shall  be  reserved  for  the  purpose  of 
writing  what  concerns  me ;  now  I  wish  you  to  see 
my  idea  in  a  more  expanded  light,  and  would  have 
you  make  use  of  that  inkstand  to  instruct  mankind, 
and  support  the  dignity  and  rights  of  human 
nature." 

In  another  letter  to  the  same  lady  he  says : 

"  It  is  impossible  to  be  more  sensible  than  I 
am  of  the  obligation  conferred  on  me  by  your 
attentions  and  kind  remembrance,  joined  to  that 
of  the  belle  comtesse,  your  fair  daughters,  and 
the  amiable  ladies  and  gentlemen  of  your  soci- 
ety. I  have  returned  without  laurels  and,  what 
is  worse,  without  having  been  able  to  render 
service  to  the  glorious  cause  of  liberty.  I  know 
not  why  Neptune  was  in  such  anger,  unless  he 
thought  it  was  an  affront  in  me  to  repair  on  his 
ocean  with  so  insignificant  a  force.  It  is  cer- 


A   VAIN   ATTEMPT. 


299 


tain  that  till  the  night  of  the  8th  I  did  not  fully 
conceive  the  awful  majesty  of  tempest  and  ship- 
wreck. I  can  give  you  no  just  idea  of  the  tremen- 
dous scene  that  Nature  then  presented,  which  sur- 
passed the  reach  even  of  poetic  fancy  and  the  pencil. 
I  believe  no  ship  was  ever  before  saved  from  an  equal 
danger  off  the  point  of  the  Penmarque  rocks.  I  am 
extremely  sorry  that  the  young  English  lady  you 
mention  should  have  imbibed  the  national  hatred 
against  me.  I  have  had  proofs  that  many  of  the  first 
and  finest  ladies  of  that  nation  are  my  friends.  In- 
deed, I  can  not  imagine  why  any  fair  lady  should  be 
my  enemy,  since,  upon  the  large  scale  of  universal 
philanthropy,  I  feel,  acknowledge,  and  bend  before 
the  sovereign  power  of  beauty.  The  English  may 
hate  me,  but  /  will  force  them  to  esteem  me  too."  * 

The  voyage  was  uneventful.  Jones  chose  the 
southern  passage,  which  was  less  frequented  by 
ships  than  the  more  direct  route ;  the  value  of  his 
cargo  being  so  great  and  the  force  of  his  vessel  so 
small,  he  did  not  wish  to  run  any  risk  of  being  cap- 
tured on  this  cruise.  When  they  had  reached  a 
point  about  twelve  hundred  miles  east  of  Florida 
and  nine  hundred  miles  north  of  Barbadoes,  in  lati- 
tude 26°  N.,  longitude  60°  W.,  they  were  chased 
by  a  sail,  which  appeared  to  be  a  large  frigate. 
Jones,  for  the  reasons  mentioned,  endeavored  by 
crowding  sail  on  the  Ariel  to  escape — his  reputa- 


*  That  was  beyond  his  power.  They  never  did  and  to 
this  day  do  not  "esteem"  him  other  than  a  pirate.  His 
courage  and  ability  are,  however,  alike  unquestioned  by 
friends  and  foes. 


300  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

tion  for  courage  and  intrepidity  was  sufficiently  high 
to  allow  him  to  run  away  without  any  imputation 
being  warranted  by  this  action — but  the  stranger 
had  the  heels  of  the  Ariel,  and  gradually  over- 
hauled her.  Night  came  on  before  she  came 
within  range,  and  Jones  hoped  to  run  away  from 
her  in  the  darkness ;  but  his  efforts  to  elude  his 
pursuer  were  unavailing,  and  when  day  dawned 
she  was  still  close  at  hand. 

The  wind  fell  during  the  morning,  and  the 
two  ships  maintained  their  relative  positions  all  day. 
Toward  evening  the  breeze  became  stronger  again, 
and  the  stranger  began  to  draw  up  on  the  Ariel.  As 
she  came  nearer,  Jones  discovered  that  she  was  not 
so  formidable  a  vessel  as  he  had  imagined,  and  he 
determined  to  effect  her  capture.  Making  a  great 
show  of  endeavoring  to  escape,  therefore,  he  cleared 
ship  for  action,  sent  his  men  to  quarters,  and  per- 
mitted his  pursuer  to  overhaul  him.  She  ranged 
alongside  the  lee  beam  just  at  nightfall.  Both  ships 
were  flying  the  English  flag.  Jones  was  ready  for 
action,  the  other  ship  was  not.  The  quartermaster 
of  the  Ariel,  whose  duty  it  was  to  hoist  the  flags,  had 
unfortunately  allowed  one  end  of  the  halliards  to 
escape  him.  Jones  had  intended,  as  the  stranger 
ranged  alongside,  to  haul  down  the  English  flag 
and  substitute  the  American  colors,  then,  crossing 
the  enemy's  bows,  pour  in  a  broadside  and  capture 
her  by  boarding;  but  this  petty  neglect,  or  trifling 
accident,  on  the  part  of  the  quartermaster  made  it 
impossible  to  haul  down  the  flag  at  the  appointed 
time,  so  the  opportunity  was  lost  and  the  project 
had  to  be  given  over.  Vessels  of  war,  when  maneu- 


ACTION   WITH   THE   TRIUMPH.  301 

vering  for  position,  frequently  sail  under  strange 
colors,  but  it  is  a  point  of  honor,  invariably  observed, 
which,  so  far  as  my  knowledge  goes,  has  not  been 
disregarded  in  civilized  warfare — if  that  phrase  be 
permissible — to  fight  under  one's  own  flag. 

Having  lost  his  opportunity  from  this  unfortu- 
nate mischance,  Jones  necessarily  entered  into  a  con- 
versation with  the  other  ship,  while  he  made  prep- 
arations for  further  maneuvering.  What  is.  known 
in  sea  parlance  as  "  a  regular  gam  "  ensued.  The 
conversation  lasted  for  some  time,  during  which  he 
discovered  that  their  pursuer  was  the  Triumph,  an 
American-built  ship  of  twenty  guns,  Captain  John 
Pindar,  an  equal  match  for  the  Ariel.  She  was 
a  British  privateer,  though  Jones  and  his  men  con- 
sidered her  a  man-of-war.  Pindar  probably  told 
them  so  to  increase  his  prestige.  After  learning  all 
that  he  could  about  English  affairs  in  America  from 
the  garrulous  captain  of  the  privateer,  who  must 
have  beemextraordinarily  stupid,  Jones  directed  him 
to  lower  a  boat  and  come  on  board  with  his  com- 
mission to  prove  that  he  was  really  an  Englishman. 
Pindar  refused  to  do  this,  and  Jones,  watch  in  hand, 
said  he  would  allow  him  just  five  minutes  for  reflec- 
tion as  to  the  disastrous  consequences  of  a  refusal 
to  comply  with  this  request.  During  this  interval 
the  Englishman  endeavored  to  clear  ship  for  action, 
his  men  not  having  gone  to  quarters  before — a 
great  piece  of  carelessness  and  neglect. 

At  the  expiration  of  the  appointed  time,  Pindar 
still  proving  obdurate,  Jones  backed  his  ship  on  the 
weather  quarter  of  the  Triumph,  put  his  helm  up, 
crossed  her  stern,  and  poured  in  a  broadside  which 


3Q2  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

raked  her  at  short  range  and  naturally  did  much 
execution.  He  then  ranged  alongside  the  lee  beam 
of  the  privateer,  and  for  ten  minutes  poured  in  a 
vigorous  fire.  The  resistance  of  the  enemy,  at  first 
spirited,  had  grown  more  feeble,  until  at  the  end  of 
that  time  Pindar  hauled  down  his  flag  and  begged 
for  quarter,  saying  when  he  surrendered  that  half 
his  crew  were  killed  or  wounded.  The  Ariel's  men 
left  their  stations  and  gave  three  cheers,  but  the 
erstwhile  stupid  Pindar  proved  to  be  a  more  wily 
antagonist  than  they  imagined.  His  ship  had 
gradually  moved  ahead  of  the  Ariel  during  the  con- 
test, and  now,  suddenly  putting  up  his  helm  and 
throwing  out  his  studding  sails,  he  ran  off  dead  be- 
fore the  wind,  with  all  his  killed  and  wounded.  The 
unsuspecting  and  astonished  Americans  on  the  Ariel 
endeavored  to  follow  the  man  who  had  so  cleverly 
eluded  them,  but  their  overloaded  ship  was  no 
match  in  sailing  for  the  swift  privateer,  which  soon 
made  good  her  escape  in  the  night. 

Jones  was  naturally  much  disgusted  at  the  out- 
come of  this  engagement,  and  in  his  journal  he 
properly  comments  upon  Pindar's  action  as  follows  : 

"  The  English  captain  may  properly  be  called 
a  knave,  because,  after  he  surrendered  his  ship, 
begged  for  and  obtained  quarter,  he  basely  ran 
away,  contrary  to  the  laws  of  naval  war  and  the 
practice  of  civilized  nations." 

Jones  stated  that  he  never  had  seen  a  ship  bet- 
ter fought  by  a  crew  than  the  Ariel  had  been  in 
this  instance.  However,  the  usual  conspiracy  to 
rise  and  take  the  ship  was  discovered  among  the 


ARRIVAL   AT    PHILADELPHIA.  303 

English  members  of  the  crew  later  on.  It  was 
thwarted  by  his  vigorous  measures,  and  on  the  i/th 
of  February,  1781,  the  Ariel  dropped  anchor  in  the 
harbor  of  Philadelphia,  just  three  years,  three 
months,  and  sixteen  days  from  the  departure  of  the 
Ranger  at  Portsmouth. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

CAREER   IN    THE   UNITED    STATES   TO    THE    CLOSE    OF 
THE   WAR. 

WHEN  Jones  arrived  at  Philadelphia,  the  Board 
of  Admiralty  was  engaged  in  investigating  the  delay 
in  bringing  the  stores  from  France.  Franklin, 
Jones,  and  Landais  were  under  discussion.  For  his 
share  in  the  performance,  and  for  other  actions  men- 
tioned, Landais  had  already  been  punished,  as  we 
have  seen.  Jones,  therefore,  was  at  once  summoned 
before  the  board,  but  before  he  reported  to  them 
they  dismissed  the  summons  and  instead  requested 
him  to  answer  in  writing  an  exhaustive  series  of 
questions  covering  his  actions  from  the  time  of  his 
arrival  at  L'Orient  the  year  before.  Jones  immedi- 
ately set  about  preparing  his  replies,  meanwhile 
sending  Franklin's  note  and  De  Sartine's  letter  to 
the  President  to  Congress,  which,  on  the  2/th  of 
February,  adopted  the  following  resolutions : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  Congress  entertain  a  high 
sense  of  the  distinguished  bravery  and  military  con- 
duct of  John  Paul  Jones,  Esq.,  captain  in  the  navy 
of  the  United  States,  and  particularly  in  his  victory 
over  the  British  frigate  Serapis  on  the  coast  of  Eng- 
land, which  was  attended  with  circumstances  so 
304 


THANKED   BY  CONGRESS.  305 

brilliant  as  to  excite  general  applause  and  admira- 
tion. 

"  That  the  Minister  Plenipotentiary  of  these 
United  States,  at  the  Court  of  Versailles,  communi- 
cate to  his  Most  Christian  Majesty,  the  high  satis- 
faction Congress  has  received  from  the  conduct  and 
gallant  behaviour  of  Captain  John  Paul  Jones, 
which  have  merited  the  attention  and  approbation 
of  his  Most  Christian  Majesty,  and  that  his  Majes- 
ty's offer  of  adorning  Captain  Jones  with  a  Cross 
of  Military  Merit,  is  highly  acceptable  to  Congress." 

In  accordance  with  the  permission  conveyed  by 
these  flattering  resolutions,  the  French  Minister,  M. 
de  la  Luzerne,  gave  a  splendid  entertainment,  to 
which  the  members  of  Congress  and  the  principal 
citizens  of  Philadelphia  were  invited.  Before  this 
distinguished  company,  in  the  name  of  the  king,  the 
commodore,  wearing  his  beautiful  sword,  was  in- 
vested with  the  cross  of  a  Knight  of  the  Order  of 
Military  Merit.  It  is  stated  that  Jones  habitually 
wore  this  decoration  thereafter,  and  referred  to  him- 
self, and  desired  to  be  addressed,  by  the  title  of 
Chevalier,  which  was  conferred  with  it. 

On  the  28th  of  March,  having  carefully  consid- 
ered his  answers  to  the  questions,  the  board  de- 
clared itself  as  fully  satisfied  that  the  delay  had  not 
been  owing  to  Jones  or  Franklin,  and  stated  to  Con- 
gress in  an  enthusiastic  document  that  the  conduct 
of  Jones  merited  some  distinguished  mark  of  appro- 
bation. In  accordance  with  this  recommendation, 
on  the  1 4th  of  April  the  following  resolution  was 
passed : 


306  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

"  That  the  thanks  of  the  United  States,  in  Con- 
gress assembled,  be  given  to  Captain  John  Paul 
Jones,  for  the  zeal,  prudence,  and  intrepidity  with 
which  he  hath  supported  the  honour  of  the  Ameri- 
can flag ;  for  his  bold  and  successful  enterprises,  to 
redeem  from  captivity  the  citizens  of  these  States, 
who  had  fallen  under  the  power  of  the  enemy ;  and, 
in  general,  for  the  good  conduct  and  eminent  serv- 
ices by  which  he  has  added  lustre  to  his  character 
and  to  the  American  arms. 

"  That  the  thanks  of  the  United  States,  in  Con- 
gress assembled,  be  also  given  to  the  officers  and 
men  who  have  faithfully  served  under  him  from 
time  to  time,  for  their  steady  affection  to  the  cause 
of  their  country,  and  the  bravery  and  perseverance 
they  have  manifested  therein." 

The  thanks  of  Congress,  the  highest  honor  an 
officer  can  receive,  were  given  to  but  five  other  offi- 
cers during  the  Revolution — viz.,  to  Washington,  for 
the  capture  of  Boston ;  to  Gates,  for  taking  Bur- 
goyne ;  to  Wayne,  for  the  storming  of  Stony  Point ; 
to  Morgan,  for  the  victory  at  the  Cowpens ;  and  to 
Greene,  for  his  success  at  Eutaw  Springs.  Jones, 
therefore,  stood  in  distinguished  company. 

On  the  igih  of  May,  to  all  of  these  honors  was 
added  a  further  evidence  of  esteem,  which  was  per- 
haps as  valuable  as  any  that  he  had  received.  It 
came  in  the  shape  of  the  following  letter  from 
Washington : 

"  SIR  :  My  partial  acquaintance  with  either  our 
naval  or  commercial  affairs  makes  it  altogether  im- 
possible for  me  to  account  for  the  unfortunate  delay 


WASHINGTON'S   TRIBUTE.  307 

of  those  articles  of  military  stores  and  clothing 
which  have  been  so  long  provided  in  France.  •  Had 
I  any  particular  reasons  to  have  suspected  you  of 
being  accessory  to  that  delay,  which  I  assure  you 
has  not  been  the  case,  my  suspicions  would  have 
been  removed  by  the  very  full  and  satisfactory  an- 
swers, which  you  have,  to  the  best  of  my  judgment, 
made  to  the  questions  proposed  to  you  by  the  Board 
of  Admiralty,  and  upon  which  that  board  have,  in 
their  report  to  Congress,  testified  the  high  sense 
which  they  entertain  of  your  merit  and  services. 

"  Whether  our  naval  affairs  have,  in  general, 
been  well  or  ill  conducted  it  would  be  presumptuous 
for  me  to  determine.  Instances  of  bravery  and  good 
conduct  in  several  of  our  officers  have  not,  however, 
been  wanting.  Delicacy  forbids  me  to  mention 
that  particular  one  which  has  attracted  the  admira- 
tion of  all  the  world,  and  which  has  influenced  a 
most  illustrious  monarch  to  confer  a  mark  of  his 
favour  which  can  only  be  obtained  by  a  long  and 
honourable  service,  or  by  the  performance  of  some 
brilliant  action. 

"  That  you  may  long  enjoy  the  reputation  you 
have  so  justly  acquired  is  the  sincere  wish  of,  Sir, 
your  most  obedient  and  very  humble  servant, 
"  GEORGE  WASHINGTON." 

An  attempt  was  made  in  Congress  to  promote 
him  to  the  grade  of  rear  admiral — which  he  certainly 
deserved — and  a  resolution  to  that  effect  was  intro- 
duced. Owing,  however,  to  jealousy  among  certain 
other  officers  whom  he  would  have  superseded,  the 
effort  fell  through.  This  would  have  settled  the 


308  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

long  and  tiresome  contention  on  the  question  of 
relative  rank,  and  naturally  would  have  been  most 
agreeable  to  Jones.  However,  the  matter  was  set- 
tled in  a  more  indirect  but  perhaps  equally  satisfac- 
tory way. 

On  the  23d  of  June,  Robert  Morris  became  Min- 
ister of  Marine  in  succession  to  the  Board  of  Ad- 
miralty, which  was  abolished,  arid  on  that  same  day 
Congress  resolved  to  take  a  ballot  three  days  later 
to  designate  the  commander  of  the  America,  a  mag- 
nificent ship  of  the  line,  building  at  Portsmouth, 
which  was  then  believed  to  be  nearly  ready  for 
launching.  On  the  26th  of  June,  the  ballot  being 
taken,  it  was  found  that  Paul  Jones  had  been  unani- 
mously chosen  for  the  position.  Since  the  act  of 
Congress  on  the  I5th  of  November,  1776,  made  a 
captain  of  a  ship  of  from  twenty  to  forty  guns  equal 
to  a  lieutenant  colonel,  while  a  captain  of  a  ship  of 
forty  guns  and  upward  was  made  equal  to  a  colonel, 
and  as  he  was  the  only  officer  intrusted  with  so  large 
a  command,  Jones  was  thus  in  effect  placed  at  the 
head  of  the  navy  list.  He  certainly  belonged  there. 
With  his  usual  good  sense  he  notes  in  his  journal 
his  satisfaction,  as  follows : 

"  Thus  Congress  took  a  delicate  method  to  avoid 
cabal  and  to  do  justice.  It  was  more  agreeable 
to  Captain  Jones  to  be  so  honourably  elected  cap- 
tain of  the  line  than  to  have  been,  as  was  pro- 
posed by  the  committee,  raised  at  once  to  the 
rank  of  rear  admiral,  because  Congress  had  not 
then  the  means  of  giving  a  command  suitable  to 
that  rank." 


COMMANDS    THE   AMERICA. 


309 


By  direction  of  Robert  Morris,  at  this  time  he 
presented  his  accounts  to  Congress.  He  had  re- 
ceived no  pay  and  but  little  prize  money  since  his 
entry  into  the  service,  and,  as  has  been  stated,  had 
advanced  large  sums  of  money  from  his  private 
funds  for  the  payment  of  officers  and  crew.  The 
Government  indebtedness  to  him  amounted  to  some 
twenty-seven  thousand  dollars,  but  no  money  was 
forthcoming,  consequently  on  the  28th  of  July  he 
was  actually  compelled  to  ask  for  an  advance  of  four 
hundred  pounds  to  pay  current  expenses  and  small 
debts  in  Philadelphia,  and  enable  him  to  proceed  to 
New  Hampshire  and  enter  upon  his  duties.  This  he 
appears  to  have  received.  He  stopped  en  route  at 
New  Rochelle,  where  he  was  handsomely  enter- 
tained by  Washington  and  de  Rochambeau,  both 
of  whom  he  had  great  pleasure  in  meeting.  As  he 
received  a  hint  at  the  army  headquarters  that  his 
decoration  and  title  might  be  obnoxious  to  the 
sturdy  New  Englanders,  he  thereafter  discontinued 
wearing  the  cross  for  a  space.  He  reached  Ports- 
mouth toward  the  last  of  August,  and  found  that 
the  America  was  still  on  the  ways  and  would  not  be 
ready  to  put  to  sea  for  months.  This  was  a  great 
disappointment  to  him,  but  he  set  to  work  with  his 
usual  zeal  to  further  the  work  of  getting  the  ship 
ready  for  launching. 

During  his  wanderings  he  had  collected  a  most 
valuable  professional  library,  and  he  now  found  lei- 
sure to  devote  a  good  part  of  his  time  to  study,  some 
of  the  results  of  which  appeared  in  the  improve- 
ments which  he  carried  out  on  the  America.  As 
usual,  he  also  resumed  his  correspondence.  In  his 


310  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

letters  of  this  period  are  many  excellent  suggestions 
looking  to  the  welfare  and  future  development  of 
the  naval  service.  Many  of  these  suggestions  were 
subsequently  adopted  in  the  service.  The  following 
letter,  dated  August  12,  1782,  which  he  received 
from  John  Adams,  then  minister  at  The  Hague,  is 
pleasant  reading: 

"  The  command  of  the  America  could  not  have 
been  more  judiciously  bestowed;  and  it  is  with  im- 
patience that  I  wish  her  at  sea,  where  she  will  do 
honour  to  her  name.  Nothing  gives  me  so  much 
surprise,  or  so  much  regret,  as  the  inattention  of  my 
countrymen  to  their  navy ;  it  is  a  bulwark  as  essen- 
tial to  us  as  it  is  to  Great  Britain.*  It  is  less  costly 
than  armies,  and  more  easily  removed  from  one  end 
of  the  United  States  to  the  other. 

"  Rodney's  victory  has  intoxicated  Britain  again 
to  such  a  degree  that  I  think  there  will  be  no  peace 
for  some  time.  Indeed,  if  I  could  see  a  prospect 
of  half  a  dozen  line  of  battle  ships  under  the  Ameri- 
can flag,  commanded  by  Commodore  John  Paul 
Jones,  engaged  with  an  equal  British  force,  I  appre- 
hend the  event  would  be  so  glorious  for  the  United 
States,  arid  ay,  so  sure  a  foundation  for  their  pros- 
perity, that  it  would  be  a  rich  compensation  for  a 
continuance  of  the  war." 

When  Jones  heard  of  the  movement  which  re- 
sulted in  the  surrender  of  Cornwallis  at  Yorktown, 
he  had  expressed  a  desire  to  serve  as  a  volunteer 

*  The  remarks  of  John  Adams  as  to  the  need  of  a  great 
navy  are  even  more  apposite  now  than  they  were  then. 


LETTER  FROM  LAFAYETTE.       311 

in  the  army  for  the  campaign  under  Lafayette.  He 
pined  for  action  always.  On  this  subject  he  received 
the  following  affectionate  letter  from  that  gallant 
Frenchman : 

"  December  22,  1781. 

"  I  have  been  honoured  with  your  polite  favour, 
my  dear  Paul  Jones,  but  before  it  reached  me  I  was 
already  on  board  the  Alliance,  and  every  minute  ex- 
pecting to  put  to  sea.  It  would  have  afforded  me 
great  satisfaction  to  pay  my  respects  to  the  inhab- 
itants of  Portsmouth,  and  the  State  in  which  you 
are  for  the  present.  As  to  the  pleasure  to  take  you 
by  the  hand,  my  dear  Paul  Jones,  you  know  my  af- 
fectionate sentiments,  and  my  very  great  regard  for 
you,  so  that  I  need  not  add  anything  on  that  subject. 

"  Accept  of  my  best  thanks  for  the  kind  expres- 
sions in  your  letter.  His  Lordship's  [Lord  Corn- 
wallis]  downfall  is  a  great  event,  and  the  greater 
as  it  was  equally  and  amicably  shared  by  the  two 
allied  nations.  Your  coming  to  the  army  I  had  the 
honour  to  command  would  have  been  considered  as 
a  very  flattering  compliment  to  one  who  loves  you 
and  knows  your  worth.  I  am  impatient  to  hear  that 
you  are  ready  to  sail,  and  I  am  of  opinion  that  we 
ought  to  unite  under  you  every  Continental  ship 
we  can  muster,  with  such  a  body  of  well-appointed 
marines  [troupes  de  mer]  as  might  cut  a  good  figure 
ashore,  and  then  give  you  plenty  of  provisions  and 
carte  blanche." 

It  would  appear  from  the  letters  that  both 
Adams  and  Lafayette  held  a  similar  opinion  of  the 
capacity  of  the  great  commodore, 


COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

On  the  occasion  of  the  rejoicings  at  Portsmouth 
over  the  surrender  of  Cormvallis  he  ventured  to 
assume  his  cross  of  knighthood  again,  and,  finding 
that  no  objections  were  made,  he  continued  to  wear 
it  on  all  occasions,  and  he  also  resumed  the  title 
of  Chevalier.  The  fall,  the  winter,  and  the  follow- 
ing summer  passed  quietly  and  pleasantly  for  the 
little  captain,  busily  engaged  in  writing,  waiting, 
working,  planning,  and  drawing.  On  the  whole  I 
think  this  must  have  been,  after  Paris,  the  happiest 
period  of  his  life.  He  made  many  friends,  and  was 
much  looked  up  to  by  the  people  of  Portsmouth  and 
vicinity.  There  was  a  spice  of  excitement  about  his 
work  as  well,  which  relieved  the  monotony,  for  the 
enemy  conceived  various  projects  to  destroy  the 
America,  which  could  not  be  put  in  operation  owing 
to  the  vigorous  watchfulness  of  Jones,  who  armed 
and  drilled  and  exercised  his  workmen  for  guarding 
the  ship.  The  birth  of  the  French  Dauphin  was 
celebrated  elaborately  in  the  summer  of  1782. 

Toward  the  last  of  August  the  ship  wras  about 
ready  for  launching,  and  Jones  cherished  high 
hopes  of  soon  getting  to  sea  in  her.  Unfortunately, 
however,  a  squadron  of  French  ships  of  the  line, 
under  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil,  entered  the  harbor 
of  Boston  at  this  time,  and  one  of  them,  named  the 
Magnifique,  was  stranded  on  a  rock  and  lost.  ConT 
gress.  by  a  resolution  dated  the  3d  of  September, 
presented  the  America  to  the  French  king  as  a  rec- 
ompense for  the  loss  of  the  Magnifique,  and  on  the 
4th  of  September  Morris  sadly  acquainted  Jones 
with  the  decision.  To  be  compelled  to  turn  over  the 
great  ship,  in  which  he  had  hoped  to  do  such  bril- 


THE    INDIEN   AGAIN. 


313 


liant  service,  to  the  French  was  a  tremendous  disap- 
pointment to  the  commodore,  but  he  wrote  in  so 
noble  and  magnanimous  a  manner  to  Morris  on  the 
subject  that  the  latter  at  once  said  to  him  that  the 
sentiments  which  he  had  expressed  would  always  re- 
flect the  highest  honor  upon  his  character.  In  fact, 
Jones'  words  made  so  strong  an  impression  upon 
the  mind  of  Morris  that  he  immediately  submitted 
his  letter  to  Congress. 

The  America  was  launched  on  the  5th  of  No- 
vember. The  operation  of  getting  her  into  the 
water  was  a  difficult  one  on  account  of  the  peculiar 
lay  of  the  land  opposite  the  ways,  but  Jones  accom- 
plished it  with  his  usual  skill  and  address.  When 
the  ship  was  safely  moored  he  turned  her  over  to 
the  Chevalier  de  Martigne,  the  former  captain  of 
the  Magnifique,  and  on  the  next  day  he  started  for 
Philadelphia.  The  America  was  reputed  to  be  one 
of  the  most  beautiful  and  effective  ships  afloat. 

Morris,  who  was  a  great  admirer  and  an  old 
friend  of  Jones,  now  desired  to  place  him  in  com- 
mand of  that  vessel  which  had  been  the  object  of  his 
desire  for  so  many  years,  the  frigate  Indien,  which, 
by  a  queer  combination  of  circumstances,  had 
finally  been  brought  to  Philadelphia.  The  King  of 
France,  having  no  use  for  the  ship,  had  lent  her 
to  the  Chevalier  de  Luxembourg,  who  had  entered 
into  a  business  arrangement  with  a  certain  sea  cap- 
tain named  Gillon,  who  was  employed  by  the  State 
of  South  Carolina  to  command  a  small  naval  force 
which  had  been  equipped  for  the  protection  of  her 
coasts,  Gillon  assuming  the  title  of  commodore. 

The  Indien,  now  called  the  South  Carolina,  had 


314  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

been  a  rather  fortunate  cruiser.  Gillon  had  captured 
a  number  of  merchantmen,  and  had  joined  in  an- 
other successful  expedition  to  New  Providence. 
He  had  then  proceeded  to  Philadelphia.  As  he  was 
indebted  to  the  United  States  for  advances  of  large 
sums  of  money,  and  as  he  had  made  no  accounting 
to  the  Chevalier  de  Luxembourg  for  his  share  of 
the  prizes,  it  was  thought  by  Robert  Morris  and 
Luzerne,  the  French  Minister,  who  represented 
Luxembourg,  that  if  they  could  get  control  of  this 
frigate,  by  placing  it  under  Jones'  command  with 
other  ships,  they  could  create  a  formidable  force  to 
cruise  against  the  enemy. 

But  Gillon  contrived  to  evade  the  legal  process 
by  which  the  claimants  sought  to  insure  the  pay- 
ment of  their  dues,  and,  in  spite  of  the  efforts  made 
to  detain  him,  he  succeeded  in  carrying  the  Indien 
to  sea,  where  she  was  promptly  captured  just  as  she 
cleared  the  capes  of  the  Delaware  by  the  Diomede, 
the  Astrea,  and  the  Quebec,  three  English  frigates 
stationed  particularly  to  intercept  her. 

Disappointed  again  in  his  hope  of  getting  a  com- 
mand by  these  untoward  circumstances,  Jones  re- 
quested permission  to  embark  as  a  volunteer  in  the 
squadron  of  De  Vaudreuil,  which  was  destined  to 
take  part  in  a  proposed  grand  expedition  to  France 
and  Spain  against  Jamaica.  Morris  forwarded  Jones' 
request  to  Congress  with  a  strong  recommendation, 
and  that  body  at  once  passed  the  following  resolu- 
tions : 

"  Resolved,  That  the  agent  of  marine  be  informed 
that  Congress,  having  a  high  sense  of  the  merit  and 


REJOICING    IN    PEACE.  ^5 

services  of  Captain  J.  P.  Jones,  and  being  disposed 
to  favor  the  zeal  manifested  by  him  to  acquire  im- 
provement in  the  line  of  his  profession,  do  grant 
the  permission  which  he  requests,  and  that  the  said 
agent  be  instructed  to  recommend  him  accordingly 
to  the  countenance  of  his  Excellency,  the  Marquis 
de  Vaudreuil." 

Admiral  de  Vaudreuil  was  graciously  pleased  to 
receive  the  chevalier  on  his  flagship,  the  Triom- 
phante,  where  he  treated  him  with  the  highest 
consideration,  even  sharing  his  cabin  with  him. 
The  expedition  came  to  nothing,  and  though 
Jones  probably  enjoyed  ample  opportunity  for  ob- 
serving the  handling  of  the  fleet,  he  saw  no  actual 
service,  to  his  great  disappointment ;  instead  of 
which  he  became  seriously  ill  with  intermittent 
fever.  At  Porto  Cabello,  on  the  4th  of  April,  1783, 
he  received  the  news  of  the  signing  of  the  treaty  of 
peace,  and  this  stern  warrior,  who  was  supposed  to 
live  only  for  fighting,  thus  expressed  himself  con- 
cerning the  subject : 

"  The  most  brilliant  success,  and  the  most  in- 
structive experience  in  war,  could  not  have  given 
me  a  pleasure  comparable  with  that  which  I  re- 
ceived when  I  learned  that  Great  Britain  had,  after 
so  long  a  contest,  been  forced  to  acknowledge  the 
independence  and  sovereignty  of  the  United  States 
of  America." 

Jones  shortly  thereafter  left  the  French  fleet  and 
returned  to  Philadelphia,  where  he  arrived  on  the 
1 8th  of  May,  1783.  He  was  still  very  ill.  He  car- 


316  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

ried  with  him  the  two  following  letters  to  the 
French  Minister  from  de  Vaudreuil  and  the  Baron 
de  Viomenil,  who  commanded  the  land  forces  on 
board  the  fleet. 

From  the  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil : 

"  M.  Paul  Jones,  who  embarked  with  me,  re- 
turns to  his  beloved  country.  I  was  very  glad  to 
have  him.  His  well-deserved  reputation  caused  me 
to  accept  his  company  with  much  pleasure,  and  I 
had  no  doubt  that  we  should  meet  with  some  occa- 
sions in  which  his  talents  might  be  displayed.  But 
peace,  for  which  I  can  not  but  rejoice,  interposes  an 
obstacle  which  renders  our  separation  necessary. 
Permit  me,  sir,  to  pray  you  to  recommend  him  to 
his  chiefs.  The  particular  acquaintance  I  have 
formed  with  him  since  he  has  been  on  board  the 
Triomphante  makes  me  take  a  lively  interest  in  his 
fortunes,  and  I  shall  feel  much  obliged  if  you  find 
means  of  doing  him  services." 

From  the  Baron  de  Viomenil : 

"  M.  Paul  Jones,  who  will  have  the  honour  of 
delivering  to  you,  sir,  this  letter,  has  for  five  months 
deported  himself  among  us  with  such  wisdom  and 
modesty  as  add  infinitely  to  the  reputation  gained 
by  his  courage  and  exploits.  I  have. reason  to  be- 
lieve that  he  has  preserved  as  much  the  feeling  of 
gratitude  and  attachment  toward  France  as  of  pa- 
triotism and  devotion  to  the  cause  of  America. 
Such  being  his  titles  to  attention,  I  take  the  liberty 
of  recommending  to  you  his  interests,  near  the 
President  and  Congress." 


VALUABLE   SUGGESTIONS. 


317 


lie  was  in  some  doubt  as  to  his  future  career, 
but  for  the  present  the  state  of  his  health  rendered 
it  necessary  for  him  to  abstain  from  active  duty. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  there  was  practically  no  Ameri- 
can navy  in  existence  at  the  close  of  the  war,  and 
no  duty  for  him  to  undertake.  The  commodore's 
constitution  was  much  shattered,  and  the  wasting 
fever  still  clung  to  him.  He  removed,  therefore, 
by  the  advice  of  his  physician,  to  the  village  of 
Bethlehem,  Pennsylvania,  where  he  passed  the  sum- 
mer in  rest  and  retirement,  and  his  health  gradually 
improved  under  the  careful  treatment  he  received. 
He  seems  to  have  had  in  mind  the  project  of  set- 
tling down  and  forming  an  establishment  some- 
where, and  marrying  "  some  fair  daughter  of  lib- 
erty," and  he  wrote  to  some  friends  in  regard  to  an 
estate  he  desired  to  purchase  near  Newark,  New 
Jersey.  However,  the  design  fell  through,  mainly 
because  he  was  unable  to  realize  upon  his  resources, 
as  his  expense  account  had  not  been  paid  by  Con- 
gress, and  no  prize  money  was  yet  forthcoming. 
While  awaiting  the  complete  restoration  of  his 
health  he  prepared  several  .plans  for  organizing  a 
navy  for  the  new  country,  all  of  which  are  distin- 
guished by  his  usual  insight  and  skill.  Many  of  the 
plans,  including  the  germ  of  a  proposed  naval 
academy  in  the  shape  of  a  schoolship  filled  with 
cadets,  were  adopted  with  profit  to  the  naval  serv- 
ice and  the  country  in  after  years.  But  the  new  na- 
tion was  too  poor  and  the  central  government  too 
weak  at  that  time  to  accept  any  of  these  suggestions. 
Finally,  by  an  act  of  Congress,  dated  November  I, 
1783,  in  accordance  with  the  report  of  a  committee 


318  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

of  which  Mr.  Arthur  Lee  was  a  member — sin- 
gular revolution  of  time  which  put  him  in  the  posi- 
tion of  upholding  Jones ! — he  was  appointed  a  spe- 
cial commissioner  to  solicit  and  receive  the  money 
due  from  France  for  the  prizes  taken  by  the  Bon 
Homme  Richard  and  his  squadron.  He  was,  of 
course,  to  act  under  the  direction  of  the  American 
Minister,  Franklin,  and  was  required  to  give  bond 
to  the  amount  of  two  hundred  thousand  dollars  for 
the  faithful  performance  of  his  duty.  It  is  an  evi- 
dence of  his  high  reputation  for  probity  and  honor 
that  he  found  no  difficulty  in  securing  signers  to  his 
bond. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

PRIZE   AGENT    IN    FRANCE   AND    DENMARK LAST 

VISIT  TO  THE  UNITED  STATES — A  BLOT  ON  THE 
ESCUTCHEON — FAMOUS  PASSAGE  OF  THE  BALTIC. 

ON  the  loth  of  November  Jones  sailed  from 
Philadelphia  to  Havre  in  the  packet  Washington. 
Being  detained  by  contrary  winds,  however,  he  put 
into  Plymouth  on  the  3Oth  of  November,  his  first 
visit  to  England,  save  as  an  enemy,  for  many  years. 
He  there  left  the  ship  and  went  to  London  for  a  con- 
ference with  Adams,  the  minister,  who  informed  him 
that  his  dispatches  for  Franklin  probably  contained 
instructions  for  concluding  the  commercial  treaty 
with  England,  and  advised  him  to  hasten.  He  there- 
fore repaired  immediately  to  Paris,  where  he  arrived 
on  the  4th  of  December.  He  was  most  kindly  re- 
ceived by  the  Marechal  de  Castries,  the  new  Min- 
ister of  Marine,  and  by  the  king  and  queen.  So- 
ciety, too,  welcomed  him  with  open  arms.  He  im- 
mediately set  about  the  task  which  had  been  allotted 
to  him,  with  his  characteristic  energy.  For  a  year 
and  a  half  he  successfully  combated  the  various 
efforts  of  the  French  Government  to  make  deduc- 
tions from  the  amount  realized  from  the  sale  of  the 
prizes  on  one  pretext  or  another,  and  on  the  23d  of 

319 


320  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

October,  1784,  de  Castries  at  last  approved  of  the 
account. 

There  were  further  delays,  as  usual,  and  the  mat- 
ter dragged  until  January,  1785,  when  he  wrote  to 
de  Castries  as  follows : 

"  From  the  great  number  of  affairs  more  impor- 
tant that  engage  your  attention,  I  presume  this,  little 
matter  which  concerns  me,  in  a  small  degree  per- 
sonally, but  chiefly  as  the  agent  of  the  brave  men 
who  served  under  my  orders  in  Europe,  may  have 
escaped  your  memory.  My  long  silence  is  a  proof 
that  nothing  but  necessity  could  have  prevailed  on 
me  to  take  the  liberty  of  reminding  your  Excellency 
of  your  promise." 

As  usual,  his  persistence  at  last  received  its  re- 
ward in  the  shape  of  an  order  on  the  Royal  Auditor 
at  L'Orient  for  the  money.  He  set  out  for  L'Orient 
in  July,  and  there  stirred  up  a  further  nest  of 
troubles,  which,  however,  he  managed  to  triumph 
over  by  the  display  of  his  usual  qualities,  and  at  the 
end  of  September,  1785,  the  account,  amounting  to 
one  hundred  and  eighty-one  thousand  livres,  etc., 
was  paid  to  him.*  He  charged  no  commission  for 
collecting  this  money,  but  his  expenses  for  the 
period  of  his  sojourn  in  France  were  placed  at  the 
large  sum  of  forty-eight  thousand  livres;  to  this 
was  added  thirteen  thousand  livres  as  his  share  of 
the  prize  money,  making  a  total  of  sixty-one  thou- 
sand livres,  which  he  appropriated  to  himself.  After 

*  Nearly  $40,000,  equivalent  in  that  day  to  much  more 
than  at  present. 


TftE    PRIZE    MONEY   IS   PAID. 


321 


paying  certain  persons  then  living  in  France  who 
were  entitled  to  share  in  the  prize  money,  he  turned 
over  to  Thomas  Jefferson,  who  had  succeeded 
Franklin,  the  sum  of  one  hundred  and  twelve  thou- 
sand livres,  to  be  returned  to  the  United  States 
for  the  use  of  the  officers  and  men  entitled  to  par- 
ticipate in  the  distribution. 

The  charges  that  he  made  for  his  personal  ex- 
penses were  certainly  very  large,  but  there  is  not 
the  slightest  reason  to  infer,  as  has  been  insinuated, 
that  "he  falsified  the  account — every  reason  to  think 
the  contrary,  in  fact.  I  have  no  doubt  that  he  actu- 
ally spent  all  that  he  claimed  to  have  done — prob- 
ably more,  for  he  was  as  apt  to  spend  as  he  was  to 
fight — but  the  amount  is  greatly  in  excess  of  what 
should  have  been  properly  expended,  or  at  least 
charged  against  the  total  for  legitimate  living  ex- 
penses. As  I  have  stated,  however,  he  was  su- 
premely indifferent  to  money,  his  own  or  other 
people's,  and  it  passed  easily  through  his  hands; 
although,  so  far  as  is  known,  he  avoided  debts 
and  promptly  paid  his  bills.  He  had  great  ideas 
as  to  the  exalted  nature  of  his  position  and  the 
dignity  of  the  country  he  represented,  and  he 
did  not  stint  himself  in  anything.  It  was  an 
expensive  court,  and  he  ruffled  it  royally  with 
the  best.  He  moved  as  an  equal  in  an  extrava- 
gant and  gay  society,  and  he  allowed  no  considera- 
tions as  to  economy  to  restrain  him  from  standing 
among  the  freest  and  highest.  We  need  not  cen- 
sure him  too  severely  in  the  premises,  for  the  ac- 
count was  afterward  investigated  by  Congress  and 
his  expenditures  approved. 

22 


322  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

During  his  long  stay  jn  France  the  fertile  mind 
of  the  chevalier  was  busied  with  various  projects  to 
advance  his  fortunes,  among  which  was  a  design 
which  he  conceived  in  conjunction  with  the  famous 
navigator  and  explorer  Ledyard,  who  had  gone 
around  the  world  with  the  more  famous  Captain 
Cook.  The  two  men  proposed  to  engage  in  the 
fur  trade  in  the  then  comparatively  unexplored 
and  unknown  waters  of  the  Pacific  Ocean.  The 
affair  assumed  a  considerable  state  of  forwardness, 
but  was  finally  dropped  on  account  of  lack  of 
necessary  funds,  the  expenses  proving  much 
greater  than  either  of  the  projectors  had  imagined 
they  would  be.  In  view  of  the  vast  fortunes 
which  have  been  made  subsequently  in  pursuance 
of  this  very  idea,  the  conception  throws  an  in- 
teresting light  upon  the  keen  business  quality  of 
the  commodore's  mind.*  As  a  light  relaxation  he 
had  his  bust  made  by  the  celebrated  sculptor  Hou- 
don,  copies  of  which  he  presented,  with  wide  gener- 
osity, to  a  number  of  his  friends.  The  bust  was 
made  at  the  instance  of  the  French  Masonic  lodge 
of  Three  Sisters,  of  which  he  was  an  honored 
member. 

Early  in  1787,  upon  the  advice  of  Jefferson,  he 
determined  to  repair  to  Denmark  to  see  what  he 
could  do  to  further  the  payment  of  the  claim  for 
indemnity,  amounting  to  forty  thousand  pounds, 
caused  by  the  delivery  of  the  prizes  of  his  famous 
squadron  to  the  English  at  Bergen.  He  had 

*  Quite  what  might  have  been  expected  from  a  "canny 
Scot."  But  it  must  not  be  forgotten  that  the  chevalier  had 
been  a  trader  before  he  became  a  fighter. 


RETURNS   TO   THE    UNITED   STATES. 


323 


reached  Brussels  on  his  journey  to  Copenhagen 
when  he  decided  to  return  to  America  for  two 
reasons:  In  the  first  place,  Jefferson  had  no  author- 
ity to  approve  the  account  of  the  commodore  in 
the  matter  of  prize  money  recently  received  from 
France.  He  had  simply  acted  as  a  medium  of  trans- 
mittal  of  the  balance  handed  him  to  the  United 
States.  The  Treasury  Board  of  Audit,  to  which  the 
account  and  the  accompanying  balance  had  been 
submitted,  strongly  disapproved  of  the  large  item 
covering  personal  expenses,  and  Jones,  when  he 
heard  their  views,  felt  it  incumbent  upon  him  to 
return  to  America  immediately  to  insure  the  ac- 
ceptance of  his  statement  and  the  adjustment  of 
the  account.  In  the  second  place,  another  mo- 
tive for  his  return  was  on  account  of  lack  of  funds. 
He  had  expected  to  receive  at  Brussels  remittances 
from  some  investments  in  bank  stock  in  the  United 
States  to  enable  him  to  proceed  to  Copenhagen, 
but  they  were  not  forthcoming.  It  would  appear 
that  he  had  spent  all  of  his  prize  money,  etc.,  which 
indicates  his  careless  extravagance  in  monetary 
matters.*  Accordingly,  he  abandoned  his  Danish 
trip  for  the  time,  and  returned  to  the  United  States 
in  the  spring  of  1787. 

His  explanations  of  his  personal  expenditures, 
while  they  may  not  have  convinced  the  auditors, 
were  apparently  satisfactory  to  Congress,  to  which 
the  matter  had  been  referred,  for  his  accounts  were 
soon  approved,  and  Congress  did  him  a  singular 
honor  in  passing  the  following  resolutions,  which 

*  Very  unlike  a  "canny  Scot"  in  this  instance. 


324  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

certainly  could  never  have  been  adopted  if  there 
had  been  in  the  minds  of  any  of  the  members  the 
least  cloud  upon  his  financial  reputation : 

"  Resolved,  That  a  medal  of  gold  be  struck,  and 
presented  to  the  Chevalier  Paul  Jones  in  commem- 
oration of  the  valor  and  brilliant  service  of  that 
officer  in  the  command  of  a  squadron  of  American 
and  French  ships  under  the  flag  and  commission  of 
the  United  States,  off  the  coast  of  Great  Britain,  in 
the  late  war;  and  that  the  Honourable  Mr.  Jeffer- 
son, Minister  Plenipotentiary  of  the  United  States 
at  the  court  of  Versailles,  have  the  same  executed 
with  the  proper  devices." 

The  fact  that  eight  years  had  elapsed  since  the' 
event  commemorated  shows  that  this  action  of  Con- 
gress was  not  the  result  of  any  sudden  enthusiasm, 
but  was  deliberate  and.  therefore  more  valuable. 
In  addition  to  this  unique  tribute  to  his  worth 
and  services,  the  same  august  body  addressed  the 
following  personal  letter  to  the  king,  Louis  XVI : 

"  Great  and  beloved  Friend :  We,  the  United 
States,  in  Congress  assembled,  in  consideration 
of  the  distinguished  mark  of  approbation  with 
which  your  Majesty  has  been  pleased  to  honour  the 
Chevalier  John  Paul  Jones,  as  well  as  from  a  sense 
of  his  merit,  have  unanimously  directed  a  medal  of 
gold  to  be  struck  and  presented  to  him,  in  com- 
memoration of  his  valour  and  brilliant  services 
while  commanding  a  squadron  of  French  and 
American  ships,  under  our  flag  and  commission, 
off  the  coast  of  Great  Britain  in  the  late  war. 


LETTER    TO    THE    KING. 


325 


"  As  it  is  his  earnest  desire  to  acquire  knowledge 
in  his  profession,  we  cannot  forbear  requesting  your 
Majesty  to  permit  him  to  embark  in  your  fleets  of 
evolution,  where  only  it  will  be  probably  in  his 
power  to  acquire  that  knowledge,  which  may  here- 
after render  him  most  extensively  useful. 

"  Permit  us  to  repeat  to  your  Majesty  our  sin- 
cere assurances  that  the  various  and  important 
benefits  for  which  we  are  indebted  to  your  friend- 
ship will  never  cease  to  interest  us  in  whatever  may 
concern  the  happiness  of  your  Majesty,  your  family, 
and  people.  We  pray  God  to  keep  you,  our  great 
and  beloved  friend,  under  his  holy  protection. 

"  Done  at  the  City  of  New  York,  the  sixteenth 
day  of  October,  in  the  year  of  our  Lord  1787,  and 
of  our  sovereignty  and  independence  the  twelfth." 

This  \vas  presumably  a  reply  to  the  official 
communication  of  De  Sartine  which  has  been  cited 
before.  So  far  as  I  know,  Jones  remains  to  this  day 
the  only  officer  so  commended.  Before  this  action 
of  Congress  he  had  written  the  following  letter  to 
Jay,  the  Secretary  of  State,  which  may  have  sug- 
gested the  official  letter  to  the  French  king: 

"...  My  private  business  here  being  already 
finished,  I  shall  in  a  few  days  re-embark  for  Europe, 
in  order  to  proceed  to  the  court  of  Denmark.  It  is 
my  intention  to  go  by  the  way  of  Paris,  in  order 
to  obtain  a  letter  to  the  French  Minister  at  Copen- 
hagen, from  the  Count  de  Montmorin,  as  the  one  I 
obtained  is  from  the  Count  de  Vergennes.  It  would 
be  highly  flattering  to  me  if  I  could  carry  a  letter 
with  me  from  Congress  to  his  most  Christian  Ma- 


326  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

jesty,  thanking  him  for  the  squadron  he  did  us  the 
honour  to  support  under  our  flag.  And  on  this  oc- 
casion, sir,  permit  me,  with  becoming  diffidence,  to 
recall  the  attention  of  my  sovereign  to  the  letter  of 
recommendation  I  brought  with  me  from  the  court 
of  France  dated  3Oth  of  May,  1780.  It  would  be 
pleasing  to  me  if  that  letter  should  be  found  to  merit 
a  place  on  the  journals  of  Congress.  Permit  me  also 
to  entreat  that  Congress  will  be  pleased  to  read  the 
letter  I  received  from  the  Minister  of  Marine,  when 
his  Majesty  deigned  to  bestow  on  me  a  golden- 
hilted  sword,  emblematical  of  the  happy  alliance,  an 
honour  which  his  Majesty  never  conferred  on  any 
other  foreign  officer.  .  .  . 

'*  It  is  certain  that  I  am  much  flattered  by  re- 
ceiving a  gold  sword  from  the  most  illustrious  mon- 
arch now  living;  but  I  had  refused  to  accept  his 
commission  on  two  occasions  before  that  time, 
when  some  firmness  was  necessary  to  resist  the 
temptation ;  he  was  not  my  sovereign.  I  served  the 
cause  of  freedom,  and  honours  from  my  sovereign 
would  be  more  pleasing.  Since  the  year  1775,  when 
I  displayed  the  American  flag  for  the  first  time  with 
my  own  hands,  I  have  been  constantly  devoted  to 
the  interests  of  America.  Foreigners  have,  perhaps, 
given  me  too  much  credit,  and  this  may  have  raised 
my  ideas  of  my  services  above  their  real  value ;  but 
my  zeal  can  never  be  overrated. 

"  I  should  act  inconsistently  if  I  omitted  to  men- 
tion the  dreadful  situation  of  our  unhappy  fellow  citi- 
zens in  slavery  at  Algiers.  Their  almost  hopeless 
fate  is  a  deep  reflection  on  our  national  character  in 
Europe.  I  beg  leave  to  influence  the  humanity  of 


THE   PRISONERS    IN    ALGIERS. 


327 


Congress  in  their  behalf,  and  to  propose  that  some 
expedient  may  be  adopted  for  their  redemption.  A 
fund  might  be  raised  for  that  purpose  by  a  duty  of  a 
shilling  per  month  from  seamen's  wages  throughout 
the  continent,  and  I  am  persuaded  that  no  difficulty 
would  be  made  to  that  requisition." 

This  is  the  first  mention  of  a  matter  which  had 
recently  come  to  his  notice,  and  ever  after  engaged 
his  attention — the  dreadful  situation  of  the  Ameri- 
cans held  captive  in  the  Barbary  States.  The  first 
public  agitation  for  the  amelioration  of  their  unfor- 
tunate condition  came  from  him,  and  the  glorious 
little  struggle  by  which  the  United  States,  a  few 
years  after  his  death,  broke  the  power  of  these 
pirates,  and  alone  among  the  nations  of  the  world 
made  them  respect  a  national  flag,  had  its  origin 
in  the  love  and  sympathy  of  Paul  Jones  for  the 
prisoner  wherever  he  might  be — a  significant  fact 
generally  forgotten. 

On  the  25th  of  October  Congress  passed  some 
strong  resolutions  on  the  subject  of  the  failure  of 
Denmark  to  pay  the  claim  referred  to  above,  and 
instructed  Jefferson  to  dispatch  the  Chevalier  Paul 
Jones  to  prosecute  the  claim  at  the  Danish  court, 
stating,  however,  that  no  final  settlement  or  adjust- 
ment must  be  made  without  the  approval  of  the 
minister.  There  was  a  decided  difference  between 
the  two  commissions  with  which  Congress  honored 
Jones. 

In  the  first  instance,  in  France,  he  was  simply 
to  obtain  what  had  been  actually  received  by  the 
French  Government  from  the  sale  of  certain  prizes ; 


328  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

the  amount  in  question  was  not  in  negotiation  save 
for  some  allowances  or  deductions  which  did  not 
greatly  affect  the  total  one  way  or  the  other.  In 
other  words,  he  was  simply  to  collect,  if  he  could,  a 
just  and  admitted  debt,  and,  after  deducting  ex- 
penses, divide  it  in  accordance  with  a  certain  recog- 
nized principle  so  far  as  his  own  share,  or  the  share 
of  any  one  in  Europe,  was  concerned,  and  remit  the 
balance  to  Congress  for  action.  In  the  second  in- 
stance, he  was  charged  with  the  more  delicate  and 
responsible  work  of  pressing  a  claim  for  heavy  dam- 
ages based  on  the  estimated  value  of  prizes  which 
the  Danish  Government  had  illegally  returned  to 
their  original  owners,  the  whole  transaction  on 
their  part  constituting  an  unfriendly  and  unlawful 
act,  which  could  easily  be  magnified  into  a  casus 
belli.  •  In  the  first  case  he  was  to  collect  a  bill  for 
forty  thousand  dollars ;  in  the  second,  to  secure  an 
admittance  of  obligation,  establish  the  justice  of  a 
claim  for  five  times  the  first  amount,  and  force  a 
payment.  The  second  commission  was  the  more 
honorable  because  the  more  responsible,  and  is  an- 
other proof  of  the  continued  and,  in  fact,  increased 
confidence  in  him  which  was  felt  by  Congress. 

The  propriety,  therefore,  of  associating  him  with 
Thomas  Jefferson,  by  requiring  the  approval  of  the 
latter  to  any  final  settlements,  can  not  be  questioned. 
It  can  not  be  considered  in  any  sense  as  a  reflection 
upon  Jones.  It  was  the  usual  and  common  practice 
under  such  important  circumstances  to  associate 
several  negotiators  to  conduct  the  affair.  The  ac- 
tion was  unfortunate,  however,  as  it  was  made  a  pre- 
text by  the  Danish  Government  for  delaying  the 


CAPTAIN    LANDAIS   AGAIN. 


329 


settlement.  They  had  already  compromised  their 
contention  of  the  legality  of  their  action  in  giving 
up  the  ships  by  offering  to  settle  with  Franklin  for 
ten  thousand  pounds,  which  offer  had  been  re- 
fused. 

One  other  incident  of  his  stay  in  his  country — 
the  last  visit  he  was  destined  to  pay  to  it,  by  the 
way — brings  upon  the  scene  for  the  last  time  one  of 
the  principal  actors  in  the  drama  of  Jones'  life. 
During  his  stay  in  New  York,  in  the  month  of 
October,  he  was  conversing  with  a  friend  while 
standing  on  Water  Street,  when  Captain  Landais, 
who  had  made  his  home  in  Brooklyn  since  his  dis- 
missal from  the  navy,  approached  them.  Jones' 
back  was  turned,  and  when  Mr.  Milligan,  his  friend, 
told  him  of  the  advent  of  the  Frenchman,  he  con- 
tinued his  conversation  without  turning  around. 
Landais  approached  slowly,  wearing  a  vindictive 
smile.  When  a  few  yards  away  from  the  two  gentle- 
men, he  halted,  spat  upon  the  pavement,  remarked, 
"  I  spit  in  his  face,"  and  passed  on.  Mr.  Milligan 
asked  Jones  if  he  had  heard  Landais'  remark,  and 
he  replied  that  he  had  not.  Nothing  further  was 
said  about  the  incident  at  that  time.  Landais,  how- 
ever, circulated  reports  of  the  meeting  derogatory 
to  Jones'  character,  and  in  reply  the  chevalier  pub- 
lished a  statement  of  the  occurrence  signed  by  Mr. 
Milligan,  and  added  that  his  respect  for  the  public 
had  induced  him  to  establish  the  falsity  of  Landais' 
report  by  the  testimony  of  the  only  witness  present ; 
he  also  stated  that  he  should  not  condescend  to  take 
notice  of  anything  further  which  might  be  said  or 
done  by  his  antagonist.  From  this  circumstance 


330  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

arose   the   rumor   that   he.  had   been    publicly   in- 
sulted— caned,  in  fact — without  resenting  it !  * 

*  After  his  dismissal  Landais  resided  in  Brooklyn,  where 
he  lived  in  very  straitened  circumstances  on  a  small  annu- 
ity, the  income  upon  an  advance  of  four  thousand  dollars 
from  Congress  on  account  of  arrears  of  prize  money  due 
him,  which  amount  was  to  be  deducted  from  his  share  of 
whatever  was  recovered  from  Denmark.  His  income  was 
about  two  hundred  dollars  a  year,  but  by  strict  economy  it 
sufficed  him.  He  is  reputed  to  have  cherished  a  high  feeling 
of  independence,  and  would  never  consent  to  receive  a  gift 
he  was  unable  to  return.  Toward  the  close  of  his  life  he 
was  a  constant  petitioner  for  five  thousand  dollars  with 
interest,  which  he  conceived  to  be  still  due  him  on  account 
of  the  Danish  claim.  Every  other  year  he  contrived  to  visit 
the  seat  of  government  to  plead  his  cause  in  person.  On 
one  occasion,' having  heard  that  a  member  of  Congress  had 
spoken  slightingly  of  him,  he  put  on  his  faded  Continental 
uniform,  buckled  on  his  small  sword,  repaired  to  the  gal- 
lery of  the  House  of  Representatives,  and  expressed  his 
readiness  to  meet  any  gentleman  who  wished  for  an  honorable 
satisfaction.  His  quaint  figure,  so  attired,  was  often  seen  on 
the  streets  of  New  York.  He  used  to  carry  his  hat  in  his  hand 
for  hours  in  the  street,  ou{  of  respect  to  his  lawful  monarch, 
executed  by  the  rebels  of  France  !  He  never  ceased  to  affirm 
that  he,  and  not  Paul  Jones,  had  captured  the  Serapis.  He 
died  in  1818  at  the  age  of  eighty-seven  years,  and  was  buried 
in  St.  Patrick's  Cathedral  churchyard.  He  had  probably 
returned  to  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  which  he  is  said  to 
have  abjured  on  his  entry  into  the  American  service.  One  of 
his  biographers  tells  us  that  he  was  a  cadet  of  the  family  of 
a  younger  son  of  the  youngest  branch  of  one  of  the  oldest, 
proudest,  and  poorest  families  in  Normandy  ;  that,  owing  to 
his  lack  of  court  interest,  which  was  due  to  his  poverty,  he 
was  kept  for  thirty  years  a  midshipman  in  the  French  navy. 
The  same  ingenious  apologist  makes  the  following  quaint 
comment  on  the  respective  actions  and  qualities  of  Landais 
and  Jones  : 


THE    END   OF   LANDAIS.  331 

During  this  period  Jones,  as  usual,  kept  up  his 
correspondence,  especially  with  Madame  de  Telison, 
with  whom  his  relations  had  evidently  reached  that 
intimate  point  to  which  I  have  referred  on  page  276. 
On  June  23d  she  advised  him  of  the  death  of  her 
friend  and  protectress  at  court,  the  Marquise  de 
Marsan.  He  wrote  immediately,  commending  her 

"  Paul  Jones,  by  his  impetuous  and  undisciplined  gal- 
lantry, earned  the  reputation  of  a  hero,  and  poor  Landais, 
by  a  too  scrupulous  attention  to  the  theory  of  naval  science, 
incurred  that  of  a  coward.  I  believe  that  naval  authority  is 
against  me,  but  I  venture  to  assert  meo  pericido  and  on  the 
authority  of  one  of  my  uncles,  who  was  in  that  action  as  a 
lieutenant  to  Paul  Jones,  that  Landais  erred  not  through  any 
defect  of  bravery,  but  merely  from  his  desire  to  approach  his 
enemy  scientifically,  by  bearing  down  upon  the  hypothenuse 
of  the  precise  right-angled  triangle  prescribed  in  the  thirty- 
seventh  '  manoeuvre'  of  his  old  text-book." 

Surely  the  author  of  this  extraordinary  paragraph  must 
have  been  more  than  an  unconscious  humorist  ! 

A  stone  erected  over  his  remains,  which  has  long  since 
disappeared,  bore  the  following  inscription  : 
A  la  Memoire 

de 

PIERRE  DE  LANDAIS 
Ancien  Contre-Amiral 

au  service 

DBS  £TATS  UNIS 

Qui  Disparut 

Juin  1818 
Age  87  ans. 

There  is  something  pathetic  in  the  picture  of  the  "Ancien 
Contre-Amiral,"  in  his  faded  Continental  uniform  and  the 
proud  independence  of  his  old  age  ;  and  perhaps  after  all  we 
may  charitably  attribute  his  colossal  blunders  to  insanity 
and  incompetency  rather  than  to  malice  or  treachery. 


332  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

to  Jefferson,  and  at  once,  dispatched  the  following 
letter  to  the  lady  herself : 

"  NEW  YORK,  September  4,  1787. 

"  No  language  can  convey  to  my  fair  mourner 
the  tender  sorrow  I  feel  on  her  account !  The  loss 
of  our  worthy  friend  is  indeed  a  fatal  stroke !  It  is 
an  irreparable  misfortune,  which  can  only  be  alle- 
viated by  this  one  reflection,  that  it  is  the  will  of 
God,  whose  providence  has,  I  hope,  other  blessings 
in  store  for  us.  She  was  a  tried  friend,  and  more 
than  a  mother  to  you !  She  would  have  been  a 
mother  to  me  also  had  she  lived.  We  have  lost 
her !  Let  us  cherish  her  memory,  and  send  up 
grateful  thanks  to  the  Almighty  that  we  once  had 
such  a  friend.  I  can  not  but  flatter  myself  that 
you  have  yourself  gone  to  the  king  in  July,  as  he 
had  appointed.  I  am  sure  your  loss  will  be  a  new 
inducement  for  him  to  protect  you,  and  render  you 
justice.  He  will  hear  you,  I  am  sure ;  and  you  may 
safely  unbosom  yourself  to  him  and  ask  his  advice, 
which  can  not  but  be  flattering  to  him  to  give  you. 
Tell  him  you  must  look  on  him  as  your  father  and 
protector.  If  it  were  necessary,  I  think,  too,  that 

the   Count  d'A ,   his  brother,  would,   on  your 

personal  application,  render  you  good  services  by 
speaking  in  your  favour.  I  should  like  it  better, 
however,  if  you  can  do  without  him.  Mr.  Jefferson 
will  show  you  my  letter  of  this  date  to  him.  You 
will  see  by  it  how  disgracefully  I  have  been  detained 
here  by  the  Board  of  Treasury.  It  is  impossible  for 
me  to  stir  from  this  place  till  I  obtain  their  settle- 
ment on  the  business  I  have  already  performed ;  and, 


WAS   THIS   HIS   SON?  333 

as  the  season  is  already  far  advanced,  I  expect  to  be 
ordered  to  embark  directly  for  the  place  of  my  des- 
tination in  the  north.  Mr.  Jefferson  will  forward 
me  your  letters.  I  am  almost  without  money,  and 
much  puzzled  to  obtain  a  supply.  I  have  written  to 
Dr.  Bancroft  to  endeavour  to  assist  me.  I  mention 
this  with  infinite  regret,  and  for  no  other  reason  than 
because  it  is  impossible  for  me  to  transmit  you  a  sup- 
ply under  my  present  circumstances.  This  is  my  fifth 
letter  to  you  since  I  left  Paris.  The  two  last  were 
from  France,  and  I  sent  them  by  duplicates.  But 
you  say  nothing  of  having  received  any  letters  from 
me !  Summon,  my  dear  friend,  all  your  resolution ! 
Exert  yourself,  and  plead  your  own  cause.  You 
can  not  fail  of  success ;  your  cause  would  move  a 
heart  of  flint!  Present  my  best  respects  to  your 
sister.  You  did  not  mention  her  in  your  letter,  but 
I  persuade  myself  she  will  continue  her  tender  care 
of  her  sweet  godson,  and  that  you  will  cover  him 
all  over  with  kisses  from  me ;  they  come  warm  to 
you  both  from  the  heart !  " 

The  Count  d'A referred  to  was  the  Count 

d'Artois,  subsequently  King  Charles  X.  Madame 
de  Telison  was  his  natural  aunt,  and  that  Jones 
should  fear  any  evil  consequence  to  her  from  her 
speaking  to  him  is  a  hideous  commentary  on  the 
morals  of  the  times.  Mackenzie  infers  the  possibil- 
ity that  the  Marchioness  de  Marsan  was  really  the 
mother  of  Madame  de  Telison,  and  from  the  assur- 
ance that  she  would  have  been  a  mother  to  him 
also,  had  she  lived,  he  thinks  it  possible  that  Jones 
might  have  contemplated  marrying  his  correspond- 


334  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

ent.  The  godson  was  possibly  Jones'  own  child. 
Shortly  after  this,  correspondence  with  Madame 
de  Telison  ceased  temporarily.  But  when  Jones 
finally  returned  to  France  their  relations  were  re- 
sumed. Before  he  died  he  provided  for  her,  and 
she  was  with  him  to  the  end. 

On  the  nth  of  November  Jones  left  America  for 
the  last  time,  taking  passage  at  New  York  on  a  ves- 
sel bound  for  Holland.  He  was  landed  in  England, 
however,  and  after  another  interview  with  Adams  at 
London,  he  repaired  to  Paris  on  the  nth  of  De- 
cember, and  presented  his  dispatches  to  Jefferson. 
Jefferson  now  communicated  to  him  a  project  which 
had  been  under  discussion  between  himself  and  de 
Simolin,  the  Russian  ambassador  at  Versailles,  look- 
ing to  a  demand  for  the  services  of  Jones  by  the  Em- 
press Catherine  II  of  Russia.  Some  recent  disasters 
to  the  Russian  fleet  in  the  Black  Sea  in  the  war 
which  she  had  been  waging  against  the  Turks  had 
caused  the  minister  to  consider  the  possibility  of  se- 
curing the  services  of  the  distinguished  sea  captain. 
No  definite  action  was  taken  by  either  party  at  that 
time,  although  Jones,  after  some  persuasion,  ex- 
pressed his  willingness  at  least  to  consider  the  situa- 
tion. Indeed,  the  prospects  were  sufficiently  brilliant 
to  have  dazzled  any  man ;  but  nothing  came  of  the 
matter  then.  Jones  had  other  business  to  attend  to. 
At  the  close  of  January,  1788,  he  received  his  cre- 
dentials from  Jefferson,  and  on  the  morning  of  the 
2d  of  February,  the  day  of  his  departure  for  Den- 
mark, he  breakfasted  with  a  Mr.  Littlepage,  cham- 
berlain to  the  King  of  Poland,  and  the  Russian  Min- 
ister, who  informed  him  that  he  had  seriously  pro- 


RUSSIAN   SERVICE    PROPOSED.  335 

posed  to  his  sovereign  that  Jones  be  intrusted  with 
the  command  of  the  Black  Sea  fleet.  He  had,  in 
fact,  written  to  her  as  follows  : 

"  That  if  her  Imperial  Majesty  should  confide  to 
Jones  the  chief  command  of  her  fleet  on  the  Black 
Sea,  with  carte  blanche,  he  would  answer  for  it  that 
in  less  than  a  year  Jones  would  make  Constanti- 
nople tremble." 

He  also  informed  the  commodore  that  the  em- 
press had  been  much  impressed  with  the  proposi- 
tion, and  was  disposed  to  l6ok  favorably  upon  it. 

Jones  in  reply  said  that  he  would  undertake  the 
command,  under  certain  conditions,  if  the  empress 
continued  in  the  same  mind,  and  set  out  with  high 
hopes  for  Copenhagen.  He  reached  that  city  on  the 
4th  of  March,  and  was  royally  received  by  the  king 
and  queen  and  principal  people  of  the  country ; 
but  in  spite  of  every  effort  he  found  it  utterly  im- 
possible to  procure  a  satisfactory  settlement  of  the 
claim.  The  shuffling  Danish  Government  seized 
upon  the  flimsy  pretext  that  he  was  not  a  plenipo- 
tentiary, since  his  powers  were  limited  by  the  clause 
referred  to  above,  and  that  since  Congress  had  re- 
quired that  everything  be  referred  to  Paris,  and  final 
action  should  be  taken  at  that  point,  there  was 
no  use  negotiating  with  an  agent.  Completely 
thwarted  in  his  attempts  by  this  unfortunate  clause, 
and  having  received  a  definite  summons  through 
Baron  Krudner,  the  Russian  ambassador  at  Copen- 
hagen, to  repair  to  Russia,  Jones  transferred  the 
negotiations  to  Jefferson  at  Paris,  which  was,  in 
fact,  all  he  could  do  under  the  circumstances,  and 


336  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

prepared  to  assume  his  new  command.*     On  the 
8th  of  April,  1788,  he  wrote  to  Jefferson  as  follows : 

"  SIR  :  By  my  letters  to  the  Count  de  Bernstorf, 
and  his  excellency's  answer,  you  see  that  my  busi- 
ness here  is  at  an  end.  If  I  have  not  finally  con- 
cluded the  object  of  my  mission,  it  is  neither  your 
fault  nor  mine ;  the  powers  I  received  are  found  in- 
sufficient, and  you  could  not  act  otherwise  than  was 
prescribed  in  your  instructions.  Thus  it  frequently 
happens  that  good  opportunities  are  lost  when  the 
supreme  power  does  not  place  a  sufficient  confi- 
dence in  the  distant  operations  of  public  officers, 
whether  civil  or  military.  I  have,  however,  the 
melancholy  satisfaction  to  reflect  that  I  have  been 
received  and  treated  here  with  a  distinction  far 
above  the  pretensions  of  my  public  mission,  and 
I  felicitate  myself  sincerely  on  being,  at  my  own 
expense  (and  even  at  the  peril  of  my  life,  for  my 
sufferings  from  the  inclemency  of  the  weather,  and 
my  want  of  proper  means  to  guard  against  it  on 
the  journey,  were  inexpressible ;  and  I  believe,  from 
what  I  yet  feel,  will  continue  to  affect  my  constitu- 
tion), the  instrument  to  renew  the  negotiation  be- 
tween this  country  and  the  United  States ;  the  more 
so  as  the  honour  is  now  reserved  for  you  to  display 
your  great  abilities  and  integrity  by  the  completion 

*  Negotiations  on  this  claim  were  protracted  for  over  sixty 
years.  In  June,  1847,  the  Danish  Government  formally  and 
finally  denied  the  validity  of  the  claim,  and  it  has  not  been 
paid.  Congress,  however,  on  March  21,  1848,  provided  for  the 
payment  of  the  prize  money  involved,  to  the  heirs  of  Paul 
Jones  and  other  persons  entitled  to  share  in  the  distribution 
of  the  fund. 


LETTER   TO   JEFFERSON.  337 

and  improvement  of  what  Dr.  Franklin  had  wisely 
begun.  I  have  done,  then,  what  perhaps  no  other 
person  would  have  undertaken  under  the  same  cir- 
cumstances ;  and  while  I  have  the  consolation  to 
hope  that  the  United  States  will  derive  solid  ad- 
vantages from  my  journey  and  efforts  here,  I  rest 
perfectly  satisfied  that  the  interests  of  the  brave  men 
I  commanded  will  experience  in  you  parental  atten- 
tion, and  that  the  American  flag  can  lose  none  of  its 
lustre,  but  the  contrary,  while  its  honour  is  confided 
to  you.  America  being  a  young  nation,  with  an 
increasing  commerce,  which  will  naturally  produce 
a  navy,  I  please  myself  with  the  hope  that  in  the 
treaty  you  are  about  to  conclude  with  Denmark 
you  will  find  it  easy  and  highly  advantageous  to  in- 
clude certain  articles  for  admitting  America  into  the 
armed  neutrality.  I  persuade  myself  beforehand 
that  this  would  afford  pleasure  to  the  Empress  of 
Russia,  who  is  at  the  head  of  that  noble  and  humane 
combination  ;  and  as  I  shall  now  set  out  immediately 
for  St.  Petersburg,  I  will  mention  the  idea  to  her 
Imperial  Majesty  and  let  you  know  her  answer. 

"  If  Congress  should  think  I  deserve  the  promo- 
tion that  was  proposed  when  I  was  last  in  America, 
and  should  condescend  to  confer  on  me  the  grade 
of  rear  admiral  from  the  day  I  took  the  Serapis  (23d 
of  September,  1/79),  I  am  persuaded  it  would  be 
very  agreeable  to  the  empress,  who  now  deigns  to 
offer  me  an  equal  rank  in  her  service,  although  I 
never  yet  had  the  honour  to  draw  my  sword  in  her 
cause,  nor  to  do  any  other  act  that  could  directly 
merit  her  imperial  benevolence.  While  I  express, 
in  the  warm  effusion  of  a  grateful  heart,  the  deep 
"3 


338  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONtS. 

sense  I  feel  of  my  eternal  obligation  to  you  as  the 
author  of  the  honourable  prospect  that  is  now  be- 
fore me,  I  must  rely  on  your  friendship  to  justify  to 
the  United  States  the  important  step  I  now  take, 
conformable  to  your  advice.  You  know  I  had  no 
idea  of  this  new  fortune  when  I  found  that  you  had 
put  it  in  train,  before  my  last  return  to  Paris  from 
America.  I  have  not  forsaken  a  country  that  has 
had  many  disinterested  and  difficult  proofs  of  my 
steady  affection,  and  I  can  never  renounce  the  glori- 
ous title  of  a  citizen  of  the  United  States! 

"  It  is  true  I  have  not  the  express  permission  of 
the  sovereignty  to  accept  the  offer  of  her  Imperial 
Majesty;  yet  America  is  independent,  is  in  perfect 
peace,  has  no  public  employment  for  my  military 
talents ;  but  why  should  I  excuse  a  conduct  which  I 
should  rather  hope  would  meet  with  general  appro- 
bation? In  the  latter  part  of  the  year  1782  Con- 
gress passed  an  act  for  my  embarkation  in  the  fleet 
of  his  most  Christian  Majesty ;  and  when,  a  few 
months  ago,  I  left  America  to  return  to  Europe,  I 
was  made  the  bearer  of  a  letter  to  his  most  Christian 
Majesty  requesting  me  to  be  permitted  to  embark 
in  the  fleets  of  evolution.  Why  did  Congress  pass 
those  acts?  To  facilitate  my  improvement  in  the 
art  of  conducting  fleets  and  military  operations.  I 
am,  then,  conforming  myself  to  the  views  of  Con- 
gress ;  but  the  role  allotted  me  is  infinitely  more  high 
and  difficult  than  Congress  intended.  Instead  of  re- 
ceiving lessons  from  able  masters  in  the  theory  of 
war;  I  am  called  to  immediate  practice,  where  I  must 
command  in  chief,  conduct  the  most  difficult  opera- 
tions, be  my  own  preceptor,  and  instruct  others. 


LETTER   TO  JEFFERSON.  339 

Congress  will  allow  me  some  merit  in  daring  to  en- 
counter such  multiplied  difficulties.  The  mark  I  men- 
tioned of  the  approbation  of  that  honourable  body 
would  be  extremely  flattering  to  me  in  the  career  I 
am  now  to  pursue,  and  would  stimulate  all  my  am- 
bition to  acquire  the  necessary  talents  to  merit  that, 
and  even  greater  favours,  at  a  future  day.  I  pray 
you,  sir,  to  explain  the  circumstances  of  my  situa- 
tion, and  be  the  interpreter  of  my  sentiments  to  the 
United  States  in  Congress.  I  ask  for  nothing;  and 
beg  leave  to  be  understood  only  as  having  hinted, 
what  is  natural  to  conceive,  that  the  mark  of  appro- 
bation I  mentioned  could  not  fail  to  be  infinitely 
serviceable  to  my  views  and  success  in  the  country 
where  I  am  going. 

"  The  prince  royal  sent  me  a  messenger,  re- 
questing me  to  come  to  his  apartment.  His  royal 
highness  said  a  great  many  civil  things  to  me — 
told  me  the  king  thanked  me  for  my  attention  and 
civil  behaviour  to  the  Danish  flag  while  I  com- 
manded in  the  European  seas,  and  that  his  Majesty 
wished  for  occasions  to  testify  to  me  his  personal 
esteem,  etc.  I  was  alone  with  the  prince  half  an 
hour.  I  am,  with  perfect  esteem,  etc." 

It  is  a  quaint  letter,  but  not  conspicuous  for 
modesty  on  the  part  of  the  writer.  But  it  is  mem- 
orable for  its  passionate  and  determined  assertion 
of  citizenship,  and  evidence  that  his  entry  into  the 
Russian  service,  temporarily,  was  due  not  to  his 
own  motion,  but  to  the  suggestion  of  Thomas  Jef- 
ferson, who  highly  approved  of  his  acceptance  of 
the  offer  of  Catherine.  Inasmuch  as  his  action  has 


340  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

been  called  in  question,  such  approbation  as  that  of 
Jefferson  is  of  great  value.  Congress  did  not  confer 
upon  him  the  desired  rank,  as  should  have  been 
done,  and,  besides,  his  statement  was  not  quite  cor- 
rect. 

Krudner  had  offered  him  the  rank  of  captain 
commandant,  equal  to  that  of  major  general  in  the 
army,  and  placed  at  his  disposal  one  thousand  ducats 
for  the  expenses  of  his  journey.  He  promptly  de- 
murred at  the  proposed  rank  of  captain  comman- 
dant, or  major  general,  and  refused  to  accept  the 
sum  offered  for  his  traveling  expenses.  It  was 
forced  upon  him  by  the  insistence  of  Krudner,  how- 
ever, and  he  finally  received  it.  He  made  no  use 
of  it  at  that  time,  keeping  the  money  intact,  and  in- 
tending to  return  it  in  case  he  should  find  it  neces- 
sary on  his  arrival  in  Russia  to  decline  the  prof- 
fered station.  He  made  but  few  stipulations  with 
her  Majesty's  agent  before  entering  upon  the 
journey  to  St.  Petersburg,  and  these  were  that  in 
the  service  of  the  empress  he  should  never  be  com- 
pelled to  bear  arms  against  either  the  United  States 
or  France ;  that  he  should  be  at  all  times  subject  to 
recall  by  Congress ;  and,  as  we  have  seen  in  his 
letter  to  Jefferson,  he  was  particular  to  assert  that 
under  no  circumstances  would  he  renounce  "  the 
glorious  title  of  a  citizen  of  the  United  States."  The 
man  of  the  world  and  the  disinterested  lover  of 
human  liberty  had  long  since  come  to  a  local  habi- 
tation and  name,  and  henceforth  he  never  failed  to 
assert  his  citizenship  in  America. 

As  he  left  the  court  of  Denmark  and  entered 
upon  his  journey  to  Russia  he  carried  in  his  pocket 


A   SERIOUS   MISTAKE.  341 

a  patent  for  a  pension  issued  to  him  by  the  Danish 
Government  for  the  sum  of  fifteen  hundred  crowns 
a  year,  which  was  presented  to  him  as  an  acknowl- 
edgment of  the  "  respect  he  had  shown  to  the  Dan- 
ish flag  while  he  commanded  in  the  North  Sea," 
etc. !  Curiously  enough,  the  pension  is  dated  the 
day  it  was  decided  to  transfer  to  Paris  the  negotia- 
tions which  he  had  come  to  further.  The  transac- 
tion is  a  most  peculiar  one.  The  coincidence  of 
dates  is,  to  say  the  least,  unfortunate.  The  reasons 
assigned  are  inadequate,  and  the  statement  of  cause 
is  puerile.  For  a  negotiator  to  accept  pecuniary  re- 
ward from  the  person  against  whom  he  presses  a 
claim  is  a  very  remarkable  thing  to  do. 

It  has  been  urged  in  justification  of  his  accept- 
ance :  First,  that  he  never  received  any  money  from 
it,  for  the  pension  was  never  paid ;  that,  however, 
was  a  fact  which,  while  it  was  potential,  was  not 
then  actual,  and  has  no  bearing  upon  his  accept- 
ance. Second,  it  has  also  been  claimed  that  the 
pension  was  given  because  the  Danish  Government 
supposed  such  an  evidence  of  appreciation  of  the 
qualities  of  her  appointee  would  be  acceptable  to 
the  empress;  but  if  a  nice  sense  of  honor  would 
dictate  a  refusal  of  the  pension,  the  bestowal  could 
not  be  considered  a  compliment,  therefore  the  ac- 
ceptance could  not  enhance  his  reputation.  Third, 
it  has  been  ingeniously  surmised  that  his  accept- 
ance of  the  pension  was  for  the  purpose  of  com- 
mitting the  Danish  Government  to  the  payment  of 
the  claim ;  but  if  that  were  true,  he  should  have 
communicated  his  acceptance  and  his  reasons  to 
Jefferson  at  once.  The  fact  that  the  government 


342  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

absolutely  refused  to  conclude  negotiations  with 
him,  and  that  he  was  of  necessity  obliged  to  per- 
mit the  transfer  of  the  negotiations  to  Paris,  takes 
away  some  of  the  odium  which  attaches  to  his 
action,  yet  it  does  not  completely  clear  him.  As 
the  Russian  prospect  had  matured  he  was  more 
and  more  desirous  of  quitting  Denmark,  and  the 
transfer  of  the  claim  to  Paris  quite  accorded  with 
his  wishes. 

This  is  the  most  painful  incident  in  his  career, 
and  I  am  extremely  sorry  that  it  occurred.  I  do  not 
suppose  that  he  realized  the  situation  quite  as  it  is 
presented  in  these  pages,  or  that  he  imagined  it 
would  have  so  damaging  an  effect  upon  his  reputa- 
tion when  it  became  known.  His  valuation  of  his 
own  services  was  so  high  that  it  was  not  difficult  to 
persuade  him — or  for  him  to  persuade  himself — that 
he  was  entitled  to  a  pension,  or  at  least  that  it  was 
not  out  of  keeping  with  his  merits.  Though  how 
he  had  ever  shown  any  particular  respect  for  the 
Danish  flag  when  he  commanded  the  Bon  Homme 
Richard  is  a  question. 

Two  circumstances  incline  me  to  believe  that  he 
was  ashamed  of  it,  however,  and  that  he  had  no 
primary  intention  of  making  use  of  it.  His  vanity 
might  lead  him  to  treasure  it  as  an  evidence  of 
appreciation,  where  his  sense  of  honor  would  re- 
strain him  from  enjoying  it.  Of  these  two  circum- 
stances, the  first  is  that  he  never  mentioned  it  to 
anybody  for  three  years,  and  he  was  never  chary 
of  letting  the  news  of  evidences  of  appreciation  be 
disseminated  ;  the  second  is  that  he  made  no  attempt 
to  draw  anything  on  it  until  he  was  a  sick,  worn- 


AN   EMBARRASSING   SITUATION. 


343 


out,  broken  man,  some  years  after,  when  he  looked 
at  life  under  different  circumstances  and  with  differ- 
ent eyes.  His  letter  to  Jefferson,  when  he  finally  did 
communicate  the  news  to  him  three  years  after,  is 
as  follows : 

"  The  day  before  I  left  Copenhagen  the  Prince 
Royal  had  desired  to  speak  with  me  in  his  apart- 
ment. His  Royal  Highness  was  extremely  polite, 
and  after  saying  many  civil  things  remarked  he 
hoped  I  was  satisfied  with  the  attention  that  had 
been  shown  to  me  since  my  arrival,  and  that  the 
king  would  wish  to  give  me  some  mark  of  his 
esteem.  '  I  have  never  had  the  happiness  to  render 
any  service  to  his  Majesty  ! '  '  That  is  nothing ;  a 
man  like  you  ought  to  be  excepted  from  ordinary 
rules.  You  could  not  have  shown  yourself  more 
delicate  as  regards  our  flag,  and  every  person  here 
loves  you.'  I  took  leave  without  further  explana- 
tion. I  have  felt  myself  in  an  embarrassing  situa- 
tion with  regard  to  the  king's  patent,  and  I  have  not 
yet  made  use  of  it,  though  three  years  have  nearly 
elapsed  since  I  received  it." 

It  is  all  that  he  could  say  for  himself.  I  am  glad 
he  had  the  grace  at  last  to  be  ashamed.  That  is  the 
best  defense  that  I  can  make  for  him,  and  I  can 
only  close  the  reference  to  this  unpleasant  incident 
by  saying  again  that  I  am  very  sorry  indeed  that  it 
occurred. 

About  the  middle  of  April,  1788,  he  set  forth  for 
Stockholm,  where,  on  account  of  his  desire  to  reach 
St.  Petersburg  without  delay,  he  remained  but  a  few 
hours,  and  then  pressed  on  to  Grislehamn  (Gres- 


344  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

holm),  Sweden,  the  nearest  port  to  the  Aland 
Islands,  via  which  he  hoped  to  cross  the  Gulf  of 
Bothnia  and  reach  Russia.  The  ice,  however,  was 
so  thick  that  he  found  it  impossible  to  cross  the 
gulf  or  even  to  reach  the  islands,  so  he  determined 
to  pass  through  the  open  Baltic  Sea  to  the  south- 
ward. He  hired  an  open  boat  about  thirty  feet  long, 
and,  taking  a  smaller  boat  in  tow,  to  be  used  in  case 
of  emergency,  he  started  upon  a  journey  which 
proved  to  be  one  of  the  most  romantic  and  adven- 
turous of  his  whole  career.  Realizing  that  in  the 
severe  winter  weather  prevailing  it  would  be  im- 
possible to  get  boatmen  to  attempt  the  passage,  he 
carefully  concealed  his  destination  from  the  men 
whom  he  had  employed  to  ferry  him  over. 

Having  first  attempted  once  more  to  reach  the 
Aland  Islands,  and  thence  proceed  to  the  Gulf  of 
Finland,  and  being  balked  as  before  by  heavy 
masses  of  drifting  ice,  he  started  to  the  southward 
between  the  Swedish  shore  and  the  ice  floes,  which, 
being  driven  toward  Sweden  by  a  strong  east  wind, 
scarcely  left  him  a  sufficient  channel  to  pass  in 
safety.  By  nightfall  he  was  nearly  opposite  Stock- 
holm, and  the  water  seemed  clear  enough  to  sea- 
ward for  him  to  attempt  to  cross.  The  men,  by 
this  time  alarmed  for  their  safety,  determined,  in 
defiance  of  his  orders,  to  put  into  Stockholm ;  but 
Jones,  seizing  the  helm  himself  and  drawing  his 
pistols,  resolutely  commanded  them  to  beat  out  to 
sea  and  obey  his  orders  under  pain  of  instant  death. 
He  was  not  a  man  to  be  trifled  with  by  a  few  Swe- 
dish boatmen,  and  by  his  directions  the  terrified  men 
headed  the  boat  offshore,  The  wind  fortunately 


CffiSAR    AND    HIS   FORTUNES.  345 

shifted  to  the  westward,  and  during  the  whole  of 
the  long  night,  in  the  midst  of  a  driving  snowstorm, 
they  threaded  their  way  through  the  floating  ice, 
steering  for  the  Gulf  of  Finland. 

Jones  had  a  pocket  compass,  and  the  lantern 
from  his  traveling  carriage  enabled  him  to  choose 
the  course.  He  naturally  took  command  of  the 
boats  himself.  The  next  day,  baffled  again  by  the 
ice  in  an  attempt  to  land  on  the  north  shore  of  the 
Gulf  of  Finland,  they  continued  to  the  westward 
and  southward  under  circumstances  of  extreme 
danger  and  hardship.  The  second  night  was  worse 
than  the  first.  The  wind  came  in  violent  squalls, 
and  the  cold  was  intense.  The  second  boat  was 
crushed  in  the  ice  floes,  and  the  men  in  it  rescued 
with  great  difficulty.  Their  own  boat  narrowly 
escaped  being  crushed  between  the  huge  pieces  of 
ice  or  swamped  in  the  squalls  on  several  occasions. 
Only  by  Jones'  seamanship  and  rare  skill  did  they 
avoid  one  or  the  other  danger.  The  men  were  so 
terrified  as  to  be  helpless  between  the  storm,  the 
cold,  and  the  thought  of  the  incarnate  little  demon 
who  sat  grimly  in  the  stern  sheets,  pistol  in  hand, 
and  neither  slept  nor  took  rest  apparently,  and  who 
handled  the  boat  with  as  much  dexterity  as  if  it 
had  been  a  toy.  One  thinks  instinctively  of  the 
little  bark  which  could  not  sink  because  it  carried 
Caesar  and  his  fortunes. 

At  any  rate,  after  four  days  of  incredible  diffi- 
culties the  passage  was  made,  and  the  boat  landed  at 
Reval,  a  Russian  port  on  the  southern  shore  of  the 
Gulf  of  Finland.  They  had  sailed  in  one  way  and 
another  about  five  hundred  miles.  Those  who  had 


346  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

known  of  his  departure  from  Sweden  had  no 
thought  but  that  he  and  all  with  him  had  perished 
in  the  attempt.  He  was,  as  he  stated  to  Jefferson, 
in  wretched  health,  and  the  exposure  alone  might 
have  killed  him.  That  he  went  on  is  highly  char- 
acteristic of  him,  and  exhibits  his  entire  indifference 
to  personal  hardships.  The  passage  presents  a  fine 
evidence  of  his  audacity.  When  he  determined  to 
do  a  thing,  he  never  allowed  anything  to  stop  him. 
Having  paid  the  boatmen  for  the  loss  of  their  boat, 
and  remunerated  them  handsomely  for  their  labors, 
he  dismissed  them  to  return  at  their  leisure,  and 
proceeded  to  the  Russian  court,  where  he  arrived  on 
the  fourth  day  of  May.  His  great  reputation,  his 
adventurous  passage,  his  strange  and  attractive 
personality,  and  the  fact  that  he  stood  high  in  the 
good  graces  and  enjoyed  the  favor  of  the  empress, 
rendered  him  an  object  of  universal  interest  and 
attraction. 

On  the  6th  of  May  he  was  presented  to  the 
empress,  who  immediately  conferred  upon  him 
the  rank  he  coveted,  of  rear  admiral.  Catherine 
treated  him  with  such  distinction  that  he  states 
in  his  journal  that  "  I  \vas  overcome  by  her  cour- 
tesies (je  me  laissai  seduirc),  and  put  myself  into 
her  hands  without  making  any  stipulation  for  my 
personal  advantage.  I  demanded  but  one  favor, 
that  I  should  never  be  condemned  unheard."  Poor 
fellow !  It  was  the  one  right — not  favor,  but  rights 
went  by  favor  then  in  Russia — which  was  not  ac- 
corded him.  He  little  knew  what  the  future  that 
looked  so  promising  had  in  store  for  him,  but  for 
the  present  everything  w;as  most  delightful.  He 


AT   CATHERINE'S   COURT. 


347 


remained,  recuperating  and  preparing  for  his  com- 
mand, for  two  weeks,  during  which  period  he  was 
magnificently  entertained  by  the  highest  nobility  of 
Russia  and  the  distinguished  foreigners  in  attend- 
ance at  the  court.  Among  his  papers  the  cards  of 
many  of  them  are  still  preserved.  There  was  one 
exception  to  his  welcome.  The  English  officers  in 
the  service  of  Catherine,  and  they  were  many  in 
number  and  high  in  quality,  affected  to  describe 
him  as  a  pirate  and  a  smuggler,  and  are  said  to  have 
threatened  to  resign  in  a  body  rather  than  serve 
under  his  command.  While  I  have  no  doubt  as  to 
their  feelings,  I  think  it  improbable  that  the  threat 
was  ever  seriously  meant,  or  that  it  reached  the  ears 
of  the  empress,  for  two  reasons :  first,  it  was  appar- 
ently never  contemplated  that  Jones  should  com- 
mand the  Cronstadt  fleet,  in  which  those  English- 
men who  were  highest  in  rank  and  reputation  were 
stationed — he  had  been  designated  for  the  Black 
Sea  fleet,  and  specifically  called  into  service  to  war 
against  the  Turks ;  and  second,  it  is  extremely  un- 
likely that  they  should  have  carried  such  a  threat 
to  the  throne,  for  Catherine  was  not  one  whom  it 
was  safe  to  threaten  for  a  moment.  Such  an  action 
in  all  probability  would  have  resulted  in  an  apology 
and  retraction,  or  a  call  for  a  resignation.  It  is  most 
improbable  that  the  English  protesters  would  have 
relinquished  the  honorable  and  lucrative  positions 
to  which  they  had  attained  in  the  Russian  service, 
with  the  great  opportunities  of  advancement  and 
pecuniary  reward  presented,  for  such  a  cause.  As 
a  matter  of  fact,  Englishmen  did  serve  with  credit 
under  Jones'  command  in  the  Black  Sea,  and  we 


348  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

hear  of  no  resignations  from  his  squadron  there. 
The  story  may  have  gained  currency  by  the  gossipy 
repetition  of  indiscreet  remarks  about  the  court,  and 
from  the  fact  that  thirty  of  the  English-Russian 
officers  signed  a  memorial  addressed  to  Admiral 
Grieg,  their  senior  in  rank,  threatening  various 
things  if  they  were  associated  with  Jones.  It  is 
hardly  possible,  however,  that  Catherine  ever  saw 
or  heard  the  petition.  At  any  rate,  nothing  came  of 
it.  Jones  enjoyed  the  anger  of  the  English — he 
would  not  have  been  human  if  he  had  not — but  as 
for  the  rest,  he  snapped  his  fingers  at  them.  He 
could  afford  to  defy  them  at  that  hour.  He  was 
then  in  the  "  high  topgallant  of  his  fortunes."  In 
a  letter  to  Lafayette  he  writes,  apropos  of  this 
feeling : 

"  The  empress  received  me  with  a  distinction 
the  most  flattering  that  perhaps  any  stranger  can 
boast  of.  On  entering  into  the  Russian  service  her 
Majesty  conferred  on  me  immediately  the  grade  of 
rear  admiral.  I  was  detained  against  my  will  a  fort- 
night, and  continually  feasted  at  court,  and  in  the 
first  society.  This  was  a  cruel  grief  to  the  English, 
and  I  own  that  their  vexation,  which  I  believe  was 
general  in  and  about  St.  Petersburg,  gave  me  no 
pain." 

As  I  have  said,  I  have  no  doubt  as  to  the 
feelings  of  the  English  officers. 

On  the  1 8th  of  May  the  admiral  left  St.  Peters- 
burg for  Elizabethgrad,  the  headquarters  of  Pa- 
tiomkine.  In  addition  to  the  sum  recently  re- 
ceived from  Krudner,  he  was  provided  with  an- 


CATHERINE'S   LETTER.  349 

other  purse  of  two  thousand  ducats  for  the  expenses 
of  his  journey,  and  his  salary  was  fixed  at  eighteen 
hundred  roubles  a  year.*  As  he  started  for  the 
Black  Sea,  Catherine  handed  him  this  letter : 

"  SIR  :  A  courier  from  Paris  has  just  brought 
from  my  envoy  in  France,  M.  de  Simolin,  the  in- 
closed letter  to  Count  Besborodko.  As  I  believe 
that  this  letter  may  help  to  confirm  to  you  what  I 
have  already  told  you  verbally,  I  have  sent  it,  and 
beg  you  to  return  it,  as  I  have  not  even  had  it 
copied,  so  anxious  am  I  that  you  should  see  it.  I 
hope  that  it  will  efface  all  doubts  from  your  mind, 
and  prove  to  you  that  you  are  to  be  connected  only 
with  those  who  are  most  favorably  disposed  toward 
you.  I  have  no  doubt  that,  on  your  side,  you  will 
fully  justify  the  opinion  which  we  have  formed  of 
you,  and  apply  yourself  with  zeal  to  support  the 
reputation  you  have  acquired,  for  valor  and  skill,  on 
the  element  on  which  you  are  to  serve. 

"  Adieu !    I  wish  you  happiness  and  health. 

"  CATHERINE." 

The  letter  to  Besborodko  referred  to  by  Cath- 
erine was  a  request  from  Patiomkine  that  Jones 
might  be  induced  to  come  immediately  to  his  head- 
quarters, that  his  talents  might  be  employed  in  the 
approaching  campaign.  Patiomkine  promised  to 
to  do  all  in  his  power  to  give  him  an  opportunity  for 
displaying  his  ability  and  courage,  f  Jones  had  pro- 

*  The  rouble  was  then  worth  about  one  dollar,  and,  as 
has  been  mentioned,  a  dollar  was  greater  then  than  now. 

f  In  after  years  Jones  indorsed  upon  this  letter  a  grim 
comment :  "  Has  he  kept  his  word  ?  " 


350  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

tested  against  being  under  anybody ;  Catherine  re- 
fused to  consider  his  protest,  hence  the  reason  for 
her  farewell  epistle  and  her  inclosure  of  Patiom- 
kine's  promise  to  be  all  that  he  should  be  to  Jones. 
He  arrived  at  Elizabethgrad  on  the  3Oth  of  May 
and  was  most  kindly  received.  But  before  enter- 
ing upon  the  story  of  his  campaign  it  will  be  well 
to  consider  the  situation  of  the  country  in  which 
he  found  himself,  and  the  characters  of  those  with 
whom  he  was  to  be  associated  in  service. 

A'ote  with  reference  to  the  Danish  pension. 

The  most  recent  biographer  of  Paul  Jones,  whose  book 
was  issued  simultaneously  with  this  one,  makes  no  mention 
of  the  Danish  pension,  and  states  that  his  reasons  for  omit- 
ting any  reference  to  it  were  "  because  it  was  never  accepted, 
never  paid,  and  never  was  intended  to  be  paid."  I  am  forced 
to  disagree  with  this  statement.  Certainly,  it  never  was  paid, 
though  what  the  Danish  government  may  have  intended  it 
is  impossible  to  say.  Probably  if  Jones  had  continued  in 
favor  in  Russia  the  pension  would  have  been  paid.  Cer- 
tainly the  commodore  accepted  the  pension,  and  he  endeav- 
ored to  procure  its  payment,  and  estimated  it  as  an  asset  in 
the  schedule  of  property  which  accompanied  his  will.  See 
Appendix  V,  page  473. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

IN    THE    RUSSIAN    SERVICE OTCHAKOFF    AND    THE 

CAMPAIGN    IN    THE    LIMAN. 

FAR  to  the  north  is  Russia.  Extending  through 
no  less  than  one  hundred  and  seventy-three  degrees 
of  longitude,  and  covering  forty  parallels  of  latitude, 
from  the  Baltic  to  the  Pacific,  and  from  the  Black 
Sea  to  the  Arctic  Ocean,  with  an  area  of  eight  and 
a  half  million  square  miles,  lies  this  great  lone  land. 
This  gigantic  empire,  touching  on  the  one  hand  the 
ice-bound  shores  of  Nova  Zembla,  and  on  the  other 
the  caravan  trails  of  Bokhara,  stretches  from  the 
Gulf  of  Finland  in*  the  west  to  Kamtchatka  on  the 
east.  Within  its  boundaries  are  comprised  bleak 
deserts  and  fertile  plains.  Verdant  valleys,  unscala- 
ble mountains,  and  vast  steppes  break  the  monotony 
of  the  landscape,  and  diversify  a  surface  watered  by 
great  rivers  from  the  arctic  Yenisei  to  the  Oriental 
Oxus.  Great  among  the  powers  is  this  mysterious 
Colossus,  her  head  white  with  the  snows  of  eternal 
winter  and  her  feet  laved  in  the  sunlight  of  tropic 
streams.  The  land  of  the  seafarers — so  its  name 
indicates — developing  enormously  and  steadily- in 
power,  wealth,  and  civilization,  in  the  nine  hundred 
years  which  have  elapsed  since  Rurik  the  Viking 
first  stepped  upon  its  shores,  has  not  yet  reached  its 


352  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

zenith.  It  is  to-day  the  home  of  more  diverse 
nationalities  than  any  other  existent  country,  and 
foreshadowings  of  unlimited  predominance  are 
apparent.  Its  sway  extends  over  more  races  and 
peoples  than  any  other  power  has  governed  since 
the  days  of  Augustus  Caesar,  and  the  end  is  not  yet. 
Well  do  its  rulers  arrogate  to  themselves  the  im- 
perial title  of  the  ancient  head  of  the  Roman  Em- 
pire. Holy  Russia,  the  home  of  the  Orthodox 
Church,  the  country  of  the  White  Czar,  the  land  of 
the  once  despised  Slav,  yet  contains  within  its  bor- 
ders, in  Lithuania,  the  focal  point  of  that  Aryan 
race  which  has  filled  Europe  with  its  splendor. 
This  Russia,  the  land  of  the  Tartar,  the  Mongol,  the 
Samoyede,  the  Cossack,  the  Finn,  and  the  Pole ;  this 
Russia,  the  land  of  Ivan  the  Terrible,  of  Peter  the 
Great,  was  now  in  the  hands  of  a  woman — of  Cath- 
erine II. 

The  little  maiden,  born  on  the  2d  of  May,  1729, 
in  the  quaint  old  town  of  Stettin,  and  of  the  insig- 
nificant house  of  Anhalt-Zerbst,  christened  Sophia, 
was  received  into  the  Greek  Church  on  her  mar- 
riage with  Peter  of  Holstein,  grandson  of  the  Ro- 
manoff Peter  the  Great,  under  the  name  of  Cath- 
erine. She  had  assumed  the  reins  of  government 
after  the-murder  of  her  wretched  impotent  husband, 
against  whom  she  had  conspired  in  conjunction 
with  the  Orloffs.  When  she  had  deposed  and  im- 
prisoned him,  unable  to  strike  a  blow  for  himself, 
he  had  stipulated  that  in  his  confinement  he  might 
have  the  undisputed  enjoyment  of  his  mistress,  his 
monkey,  and  his  violin !  Even  these  kingly  pleas- 
ures were  soon  of  little  use  to  him,  for  on  the  i8th 


CATHERINE   II. 


353 


of  July,  1762,  but  a  few  days  after  the  revolution 
which  had  hurled  him  from  his  throne,  Peter  lay 
dead  in  the  palace  with  some  ominous  and  inefface- 
able black  marks  around  his  throat,  telling  of  the 
manner  of  his  death  from  the  giant  hands  of  the 
terrible  Orloffs — and  his  wife  was  privy  to  the  mur- 
der and  consenting  to  it!  That  her  husband  had 
been  a  knave  and  a  fool — almost  a  madman — does 
not  excuse  her.  Catherine  was  then  immediately 
proclaimed  empress  in  her  own  right.  As  the  Nea- 
politan Caraccioli  said,  the  Russian  throne  was 
neither  hereditary  nor  elective,  but  occupative! 
Catherine  occupied  it,  and  as  long  as  she  lived  Rus- 
sia knew  no  other  master.  The  world  marveled  at 
her  audacity,  and  trembled  for  the  consequences  of 
her  usurpation,  but  men  soon  found  that,  gigantic 
as  had  been  her  assurance,  and  tremendous  as  was 
her  task,  she  was  entirely  equal  to  the  undertaking. 
She  had  a  genius  for  reigning  as  great  as  had  been 
exhibited  by  Elizabeth  Tudor — good  Queen  Bess ! 
In  spite  of  her  bad  qualities  and  evil  beginning, 
Russia  never  progressed  more  than  while  under  her 
sway.  She  fairly  divides  honor  as  a  sovereign,  in 
Slavonic  history,  with  Peter  the  Great.  True  it  is 
that  Catherine  had  "  woven  out  of  the  bloody  vest- 
ments of  Peter  III  the  most  magnificent  imperial 
mantle  that  a  woman  had  ever  worn." 

Some  one  wrote  to  Madame  Vigee  le  Brun,  who 
essayed  to  paint  her  picture : 

"  Take  the  map  of  the  empire  of  Russia  for  can- 
vas, the  darkness  of  ignorance  for  background,  the 
spoils  of  Poland  for  drapery,  human  blood  for  col- 
24 


354  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

oring,  the  monuments  of  her  reign  for  the  car- 
toon, and  for  the  shadow  six  months  of  her  son's 
reign." 

A  singular  and  complex  character  was  that  of 
this  famous  despot,  this  "  Semiramis  of  the  North." 
Never  more  than  a  half-educated  woman — and  in 
that  she  corresponded  with  her  empire — she  learned 
her  politics  from  Montesquieu,  drew  her  philosophy 
of  life  from  Voltaire,  and  shaped  her  morals  after 
Brantome !  A  creature  of  singular  contradictions, 
she  loved  liberty,  favored  the  struggle  of  the  United 
States,  and  ruled  an  absolute  despot;  she  wrote 
charming  fairy  tales  for  children  and  rode  horse- 
back astride  like  a  man ;  she  was  one  of  the  greatest 
sticklers  for  morals — in  other  people — the  world 
has  ever  known,  and  yet  was  herself  one  of  the  most 
colossal  examples  of  unblushing  and  shameless  pro- 
fessional sensuality  that  ever  sat  upon  a  throne. 
Other  rulers  and  sovereigns  have  had  their  favor- 
ites, she  alone  made  favoritism  a  state  institution. 
"  What  has  ruined  the  country,"  she  naively  writes, 
"  is  that  the  people  fall  into  vice  and  drunkenness, 
and  the  comic  opera  has  corrupted  the  whole  na- 
tion !  "  As  a  corrupter  by  example  she  surpassed 
all  the  comic  operas  ever  written.  The  morals  of 
Russia,  in  her  day,  were  rotten  from  the  head  down- 
ward. Yet  in  spite  of  all  this  she  was  a  great 
princess.  She  was  allowed  to  occupy  that  throne 
because  she  made  Russia  greater  with  each  succes- 
sive year ;  not  alone  by  force  of  arms  either,  and  the 
Russian  destiny  makers  loved  her.  Education,  the 
arts,  and  sciences,  all  felt  the  stimulus  of  her  in- 


PATIOMKINE. 


355 


terest  and  responded  to  her  efforts.  Progress  was 
the  word  of  this  imperious  woman.  She  had  a 
faculty  for  ruling  as  remarkable  as  her  exploitation 
of  favoritism.  Yet  she  governed  her  empire  with 
a  sublime  indifference  to  public  opinion,  and  squan- 
dered its  revenues  in  a  shameless  prostitution  of  her 
own  person,  which  ceased  only  with  her  death,  in 
1794,  at  the  age  of  sixty-five !  The  fact  that  Cather- 
ine made  an  official  business  out  of  favoritism,  and 
that  she  was  so  utterly  oblivious  to  the  moral  in- 
consistency of  it — for  she  was  a  faithful  member  of 
the  Holy  Orthodox  Church — seems  to  lift  it  upon  a 
plane  of  its  own,  so  simple  and  brazen  was  it. 

Upon  the  chief  of  her  favorites  alone  she  had 
bestowed  more  than  fifty  million  roubles,  vast 
estates  carrying  with  them  nearly  one  hundred 
thousand  serfs,  and  in  addition  orders,  titles,  privi- 
leges, and  decorations  innumerable.  The  name 
of  this  favorite  was  Gregory  Alexandrovitch  Pati- 
omkine,  commonly  called  Potemkin.  He  was  the 
second  of  the  gre^t  Vrcmicnchtchick,  as  the  favorites 
were  called,  the  word  meaning  "  men  of  the  mo- 
ment !  "  He  succeeded  the  gigantic  Orloff,  whose 
term  as  the  favorite  was  longer  than  that  of  any 
successor,  for  he  had  enjoyed  a  tenure  of  almost  ten 
years — the  usual  period  being  about  two.  Patiom- 
kine's  personal  association  with  the  empress  was 
only  for  that  short  time,  when  he  was  supplanted  by 
another  object  of  royal  regard.  Unlike  all  the  other 
favorites,  Patiomkine  was  not  relegated  to  prompt 
obscurity,  and  he  continued  to  be  the  power  be- 
hind the  throne  for  practically  the  remainder  of  his 
life.  He  was  greater  than  all  the  others — too  great 


356  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

to  be  done  away  with,  in  fact.  If  he  could  not  be 
the  favorite,  he  would,  like  Warwick  the  king- 
maker, make  the  favorite,  and  for  fifteen  years  he 
continued  to  do  so.  During  this  period  he  swayed 
the  destinies  of  the  empire  as  a  sort  of  mayor  of  the 
palace. 

The  analogy  is  not  altogether  accurate,  for 
Catherine  was  no  supine  Merovingian  to  commit 
the  administration  of  the  state  to  others  while  she 
passed  hours  of  dalliance  in  the  secret  chambers  of 
the  palace;  she  was  too  strong  and  too  great  for 
that,  and  she  always  retained  her  grasp  upon  the 
helm ;  but  it  is  certain  that  none  of  her  favorites  had 
ever  enjoyed  such  power  and  wielded  it  so  openly  as 
this  princely  pander. 

As  to  Patiomkine  himself,  the  world  did  not 
know  whether  he  was  a  genius  or  a  madman.  At 
times  he  seems  to  have  passed  over  that  slender 
line  which  divides  these  two  antitheses  of  character, 
and  appears  now  on  one  side,  now  on  the  other. 
Personally  he  was  a  man  of  huge  bulk  and  great 
strength,  with  the  natural  instincts  of  an  animal  and 
a  veneer,  more  or  less  strong  on  occasion,  of  re- 
finement. He,  too,  typified  Russia,  a  giant  rising 
through  barbarism  into  the  civilization  of  the  cen- 
tury— and  not  yet  arrived,  either — now  inclining 
to  the  one  side  or  the  other.  Catherine  usually  chose 
her  favorites  among  men  of  great  physical  vigor. 
Patiomkine  was  a  giant  in  size.  His  vast  frame  was 
capable  of  sustaining  the  most  tremendous  hard- 
ships. He  was  a  black-haired,  swarthy,  hot-tem- 
pered man,  not  pleasant  to  look  upon,  for  he  had 
lost  an  eye  in  a  fist  fight  after  a%  drunken  revel  with 


PATIOMKINE. 


357 


the  Orloffs.  He  squinted  with  the  other,  and  even 
had  not  a  figure  to  redeem  him,  for  he  was  mark- 
edly knock-kneed.  He,  like  his  mistress  and  his 
country,  was  a  creature  of  contradictions.  In  his 
palace  in  St.  Petersburg  we  find  him  trifling  with 
the  most  delicate  creations  of  the  most  skilled  chef, 
and  on  his  journeys  eating  rapaciously  of  anything 
that  came  to  hand.  He  sent  his  adjutants  thousands 
of  miles  for  perfumes  which  caught  his  fancy,  and 
galloped  madly  himself  across  half  Europe  without 
rest  or  sleep  for  days  in  pursuance  of  duty,  and 
then  spent  weeks  in  dalliance  with  his  harem. 

With  the  one  hand  he  wrote  poetic  letters  that 
quiver  and  thrill  with  tenderness  and  beauty,  pathos 
and  passion,  and  with  the  other  he  calmly  consigned 
thousands  of  people  to  death.  One  day  we  find 
him  raging  because  his  soldiers  are  not  better  cared 
for,  and  on  the  next  day  remarking  cynically,  when 
the  absence  of  ambulances  was  brought  to  his 
notice,  that  so  much  the  better — they  would  not  have 
to  bother  with  the  wounded !  Sometimes  cowardly, 
sometimes  bold  to  the  point  of  recklessness ;  atheist 
and  devotee,  debauchee  and  ascetic,  coarse  and  re- 
fined, imperious  and  cringing,  brutal  and  gentle, 
king  and  slave,  Christian  and  pagan — his  life  re- 
mains a  mystery. 

After  he  died  of  a  frightful  attack  of  indigestion, 
brought  on  by  gorging  himself  with  coarse  food, 
Catherine's  son,  upon  succeeding  to  the  throne, 
treated  his  body  with  great  indignity ;  and  it  was  not 
until  seventy  years  later  that  his  remains  were  dis- 
covered and  interred  in  the  Cathedral  of  Kherson. 
Prince  of  Taurida,  the  conqueror  of  the  Crimea,  and 


358  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

under  Catherine  the  originator  of  that  tremendous 
and  irresistible  Russian  policy  which  will  some  day 
replace  the  Greek  cross  upon  the  temple  of  Justinian 
in  Constantinople,  Patiomkine  is  one  of  the  most 
remarkable  figures  in  the  history  of  the  world. 

In  the  service  of  the  first  of  these  two  person- 
ages, and  under  the  specific  orders  of  the  last,  Paul 
Jones  was  to  make  a  campaign.  It  wras  foredoomed 
to  failure.  Jones  was  not  a  good  subordinate  to 
any  one.  His  temper,  his  lack  of  self-control,  his 
pride,  and  his  vanity  rendered  any  ultimate  suc- 
cessful association  with  a  man  like  Patiomkine  im- 
possible. Patiomkine  had  all  Jones'  faults  and  a 
thousand  more.  They  harmonized  like  flint  and 
steel.  To  further  complicate  matters,  Jones  was  to 
be  associated  in  his  command,  with  the  limits  of 
authority  not  clearly  defined  between  them — always 
a  prolific  source  of  trouble,  and  certain  to  cause 
failure — with  Prince  Otto  of  Nassau-Siegen,  of 
whom  we  have  heard  before.  He  had  asked 
to  serve  under  Jones  in  the  Indien,  and  when 
that  project  fell  through  he  had  failed  to  an- 
swer Jones'  letters,  and  had  treated  him  with  dis- 
courtesy and  indifference.  In  Catherine's  army  and 
navy  thousands  of  soldiers  of  fortune  found  a  con- 
genial atmosphere  and  a  golden  opportunity.  They 
were  all  made  welcome,  and,  with  anything  like  suc- 
cess to  warrant  them,  they  generally  achieved  a 
handsome  reward  in  her  generous  service.  The 
most  noted  among  them,  and  one  of  the  most  worth- 
less, is  this  man,  whom  Waliszewski  calls  "  the  last 
notable  condotticrre  of  Europe ;  a  soldier  without 
country,  without  home,  and  almost  without  family, 


NASSAU-SIEGEN. 


359 


his  very  name  is  the  first  of  his  conquests."  His 
father  was  the  illegitimate  son  of  a  princeling,  but 
the  Parliament  of  Paris,  in  1756,  gave  the  young 
Otto,  then  eleven  years  of  age,  the  right,  so  far  as 
they  had  the  power,  to  bear  the  name  of  his  ances- 
tors, to  which  he  had  no  legitimate  claim.  They 
could  not,  however,  do  anything  for  his  patrimony. 
He  had  been  a  lieutenant  of  infantry,  a  captain  of 
dragoons,  and  finally  a  sailor  under  Bougainville 
when  he  made  his  famous  voyage  around  the  world. 
Later  he  appears  as  an  unsuccessful  explorer  in 
Africa.  In  fact,  he  was  not  successful  at  anything. 
Unlike  Crichton,  he  did  everything  equally  ill. 

In  1779,  as  a  colonel  of  French  infantry,  he  made 
an  unsuccessful  attempt  upon  the  island  of  Jersey. 
The  next  year,  in  the  Spanish  service,  he  com- 
manded, unsuccessfully  as  usual,  some  floating 
batteries  before  Gibraltar.  Among  other  exploits — 
and  it  was  his  one  triumph — he  seduced  the  Queen 
of  Tahiti,  so  he  said,  and  the  reputation  of  the  un- 
fortunate lady  found  no  defenders  in  Europe.  He 
married  a  homely  Polish  countess  with  a  great  for- 
tune, and  after  meddling  (unsuccessfully)  with  all 
sorts  of  things  got  himself  appointed  to  the  com- 
mand of  a  flotilla  of  Russian  gunboats  operating 
against  the  Turks. 

But  to  return  to  the  story;  the  long  distance — 
seven  hundred  and  fifty  miles  as  the  crow  flies  and 
probably  twice  that  by  road — between  St.  Peters- 
burg and  Elizabethgrad,  was  covered  by  Jones  in 
twelve  days.  He  was  in  a  hurry,  as  always,  to  get 
to  sea.  The  object  of  the  Prince  Marshal's  attack 
was  the  fortified  town  of  Otchakoff,  commonly 


360  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

spelled  in  contemporary  manuscripts  Oczakow. 
This  important  place  was  situated  on  the  Russo- 
Turkish  frontier  of  that  day,  on  the  Black  Sea,  not 
far  from  the  present  city  of  Odessa,  and  occupied  a 
commanding  position  at  the  confluence  of  the  great 
river  Dnieper  and  the  smaller  river  Bug.  South- 
ward of  the  mainland  the  peninsula  of  Kinburn,  a 
narrow,  indented  point  of  land,  projects  for  perhaps 
twenty  miles  to  the  westward,  forming  a  narrow 
estuary  of  the  Black  Sea  about  fifty  miles  long  and 
from  five  to  ten  miles  wide,  into  which  the  two 
rivers  pour  their  vast  floods.  This  estuary  is  some- 
times called  the  Dnieper  Bay,  but  more  commonly 
the  Liman,  and  the  undertaking  hereafter  described 
is  referred  to  as  the  campaign  in  the  Liman.  The 
bay  or  inlet  is  very  shallow.  Sand  banks  and  shoals 
leave  but  a  narrow,  tortuous  channel,  which  is  of  no 
great  depth  at  best.  The  end  of  the  peninsula  of 
Kinburn  terminates  in  a  long  and  very  narrow  strip 
of  land,  a  point  which  reaches  up  toward  the  north- 
ward and  almost  closes  the  opening  of  the  estuary ; 
the  distance  between  the  point  and  Fort  Hassan,  the 
southernmost  fortification  of  Otchakoff,  is  possi- 
bly two  miles.  This  narrow  entrance  is  further 
diminished  by  a  long  shoal  which  extends  south 
from  Fort  Hassan  toward  the  point,  so  that,  except 
for  one  contracted  channel,  the  passage  is  prac- 
ticable for  vessels  of  very  light  draught  only. 

Otchakoff  lies  between  the  Bug  and  a  smaller 
river  called  the  Beresan,  deep  enough  near  its 
mouth  for  navigation  by  small  vessels.  It  was 
strongly  fortified  and  garrisoned  by  ten  thousand 
men.  While  it  remained  in  the  hands  of  the  Turks 


OTCHAKOFF.  361 

it  menaced  the  Russian  communications  and  ren- 
dered it  difficult  for  them  to  hold  the  great  penin- 
sula of  Taurida,  now  known  as  the  Crimea,  which 
Patiomkine  had  conquered  previously,  and  from 
which  he  had  taken  the  name  of  Taurichevsky,  or 
Tauricien,  or  Taurida,  with  his  dukedom.  Patiom- 
kine, therefore,  decided  to  besiege  and  capture  this 
place. 

To  prevent  this,  the  Turks  had  re-enforced  it  by 
one  hundred  and  twenty  armed  vessels,  ranging 
from  ships  of  the  line  to  gunboats,  under  the  com- 
mand of  one  of  the  ablest  of  their  admirals,  a  dis- 
tinguished old  sailor,  who  had  been  recalled  from 
service  in  Egypt,  which  had  been  brilliantly  success- 
ful, to  conduct  this  operation.  So  long  as  they 
could  keep  open  communication  by  sea  with  Otcha- 
koff  its  power  of  resistance  would  be  prolonged 
and  its  capture  a  matter  of  extreme  difficulty.  The 
object  of  Jones'  campaign  was  to  hold  the  Liman 
till  Patiomkine  could  invest  Otchakoff,  then  to  de- 
feat the  Turkish  naval  forces  in  the  bay,  and  to 
blockade  the  town.  Incidentally  he  was  required  to 
cover  the  Russian  towns  on  the  Dnieper  and  pre- 
vent any  descent  upon  them  by  the  Turks ;  a  hard 
task  for  any  man  with  the  force  available  and  likely 
to  be  placed  under  his  command. 

Having  stayed  but  one  day  at  Elizabethgrad, 
Jones,  accompanied  by  one  of  the  staff  officers  of 
Patiomkine,  set  out  for  Kherson,  which  is  located 
near  the  point  where  the  Dnieper  enters  the  Liman, 
and  is  the  principal  Russian  naval  depot  in  that 
section  of  the  country.  The  two  officers  spent  but 
one  day  at  Kherson,  but  the  time  was  sufficient  to 


^62  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

develop  the  fact,  as  Jones  said,  that  he  had  entered 
"  on  a  delicate  and  disagreeable  service." 

Mordwinoff,  the  Russian  Chief  of  Admiralty, 
treated  him  with  the  utmost  coolness  and  indiffer- 
ence, and,  though  he  had  been  ordered  by  Patiom- 
kine  to  give  Jones  full  information  as  to  the  situa- 
tion, he  told  him  nothing  of  importance,  and  even 
failed  to  provide  him  with  a  rear  admiral's  flag,  to 
which  he  was  entitled.  However,  the  day  after  his 
arrival  at  Kherson,  Jones  repaired  to  the  town  of 
Gluboca,  off  which,  in  one  of  the  deeps  of  the  river 
between  the  Dnieper  and  the  mouth  of  the  Bug 
called  Schiroque  Roads,  his  command  was  anchored. 
It  comprised  a  single  line  of  battle  ship,  the  Wolodi- 
mer — which,  on  account  of  its  great  draught  and  the 
shoal  water  of  the  Liman,  could  only  mount  twenty- 
six  guns — five  frigates,  five  sloops  of  war,  and  fodr 
smaller  vessels,  making  a  total  of  fifteen  sail.*  The 
ships  were  badly  constructed,  "  drew  too  much 
water  for  the  navigation  of  the  Black  Sea,  were  too 
crank  to  carry  the  heavy  guns  that  were  mounted 
on  them,  and  sailed  badly."  They  were  makeshift 
craft  constructed  by  people  who  since  Rurik's  ad- 
vent have  exhibited  surprisingly  little  aptitude  for 
the  sea.  I  can  imagine  Jones'  disgust  and  disap- 
pointment as  he  inspected  his  squadron  with  a  sea- 
man's quick  and  comprehensive  glance.  In  addi- 
tion to  this  force,  there  was  a  large  flotilla  of  light- 
draught  gunboats,  each  carrying  a  single  heavy 
gun,  and  sometimes  smaller  pieces,  manned  by 

*  Some  authorities  say  fourteen  ;  the  difference  is  imma- 
terial. 


SQUADRON   AND   FLOTILLA.  363 

from  thirty  to  forty  men  each,  and  propelled  mainly 
by  oars. 

The  command  of  the  flotilla  had  been  committed 
to  the  Prince  of  Nassau-Siegen,  and,  although 
Jones  had  been  repeatedly  assured  that  he  was  to 
have  supreme  charge  of  all  naval  operations  in  the 
Liman,  he  found  that  Nassau  exercised  an  inde- 
pendent command,  and  instead  of  being  subordinate 
to  him,  had  only  been  requested  to  co-operate  with 
him.  Jones'  command  will  be  called  the  squadron, 
Nassau's  the  flotilla,  hereafter  in  these  pages,  to 
prevent  confusion.  The  squadron  had  been  hith- 
erto under  the  command  of  a  cowardly  Greek  cor- 
sair named  Alexiano,  reputed  a  Turkish  subject, 
who  had  attained  the  rank  of  captain  commandant, 
or  brigadier,  equivalent  to  commodore.  He  was  a 
man  of  little  capacity,  great  timidity,  and  was  tricky 
and  unreliable  in  his  disposition. 

Jones  immediately  proceeded  on  board  the  Wolo- 
dimer  and  exhibited  his  orders.  He  found  that 
Alexiano  had  assembled  all  the  commanders  of  the 
ships,  and  endeavored  to  persuade  them  to  rebel 
against  his  authority.  The  attempted  cabal  came  to 
nothing,  however,  and  on  receiving  a  letter  from 
Patiomkine  Alexiano  relinquished  the  command  to 
Jones,  and  with  a  very  ill  grace  consented  to  serve 
as  his  subordinate — he  had  to.  On  the  same  day  in 
which  he  arrived,  in  order  to  ascertain  the  topog- 
raphy of  the  situation,  Jones  left  the  Wolodimer  and 
rode  over  to  Kinburn  Point,  opposite  Otchakoff. 
After  a  careful  examination  of  the  water  which  he 
was  to  defend  and  the  town  he  was  to  blockade,  so 
far  as  he  could  make  it  from  the  shore,  he  returned 


364  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

to  the  Wolodimer,  and  finding,  as  he  says,  "  all  the 
officers  contented,"  he  hoisted  his  rear  admiral's 
flag  on  that  ship  on  the  evening  of  the  6th  of  June, 
1788.*  The  Prince  of  Nassau-Siegen  called  upon 
him  promptly,  and  apparently  recognized  his  supe- 
riority in  rank,  if  not  his  right  to  command.  He 
had  an  immediate  foretaste  of  the  character  of  his 
new  associates  when  the  prince  informed  him  that 
if  they  gained  any  advantage  over  the  Turks  it 
would  be  necessary  to  exaggerate  it  to  the  utmost ! 
Jones  replied  that  he  had  never  adopted  that  method 
of  heightening  his  personal  merits.  He  might  have 
added  that  a  true  recital  of  his  exploits  was  suf- 
ficiently dazzling  to  need  no  embellishment  by  the 
wildest  imagination. 

The  celebrated  General  Stivorof  was  in  com- 
mand of  the  strong  fortress  of  Kinburn,  which  was 
supposed  to  command  the  entrance  of  the  Liman, 
but  it  was  too  far  inland  to  menace  Otchakoff,  or, 
indeed,  to  command  anything  effectively.  It  is  an 
evidence  of  Jones'  quick  perception  and  fine  mili- 
tary instinct  that  as  soon  as  he  inspected  the  posi- 
tion he  discovered  the  advantage  of  placing  a 
battery  on  Kinburn  Point,  opposite  the  shoal  to 
which  I  have  referred :  and  his  first  act  upon 
assuming  the  command  was  to  point  out  to 
Suvorof,  who  was  perhaps  the  greatest  of  all 
Russian  soldiers,  the  absolute  necessity  for  a  bat- 
tery there.  Realizing  the  fact,  Suvorof  immedi- 
ately mounted  a  formidable  battery  on  the  point, 


*  All  dates  given,  except  in  letters,  are  new  style,  eleven 
days  in  advance  of  Russian  dates. 


A   STRATEGIC    POINT.  365 

and  he  magnanimously  credited  Jones  with  the  idea, 
in  spite  of  the  fact  that  the  previous  neglect  to  for-- 
tify  the  point  was  a  reflection  on  his  military  skill. 
Before  the  guns  were  in  position  the  capitan  pasha 
as  the  Turkish  admiral  was  styled,  with  twenty-one 
frigates  and  sloops  of  war,  and  several  smaller  ves- 
sels, entered  the  Liman  and  anchored  before  Otcha- 
koff.  He  was  followed  by  a  flotilla  of  gunboats 
about  equal  in  number  and  individual  efficiency  to 
the  Russian  flotilla.  The  ships  of  the  line  and 
heavier  frigates  of  the  Turks,  unable  to  approach 
near  the  town,  remained  at  anchor  in  the  open  roads 
to  the  westward,  and  as  they  took  no  part  in  the 
subsequent  actions  they  may  be  dismissed  from 
further  notice.  Even  as  it  was,  however,  the  Turk- 
ish force  greatly  overmatched  the  Russian. 

Jones  had  fifteen  ships,  the  Turks  twenty-one, 
and  ship  for  ship  the  advantage  was  entirely  in 
favor  of  the  Turks.  In  number  the  two  flotillas 
of  gunboats  were  about  the  same,. and  there  was  not 
much  choice  in  their  quality.  The  poor  quality  of 
Nassau's  leadership  could  hardly  be  surpassed  by 
any  Turk,  however  incompetent,  but  the  capitan 
pasha  in  critical  moments  led  his  own  flotilla,  and, 
as  Jones  practically  did  the  same  for  the  Russian 
gunboats,  Nassau's  incompetency  did  not  matter  so 
much  as  it  might. 

On  the  Qth  of  June,  having  meanwhile  received 
re-enforcements  of  soldiers  to  complete  the  crews, 
the  squadron,  followed  by  the  flotilla,  got  under 
way  and  stood  toward  the  entrance  of  the  Liman. 
The  combined  force  anchored  in  two  lines,  the 
squadron  forming  an  obtuse  angle  in  the  channel 


366  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

"with  the  opening  toward  Otchakoff,  so  as  to  be  able 
to  pour  a  cross  fire  upon  any  approaching  ships. 
On  the  right  and  left  flanks  in  the  shallow  water 
divisions  of  gunboats  were  stationed,  with  another 
division  immediately  in  the  rear  of  the  squadron, 
and  a  reserve  division  at  hand  to  re-enforce  any 
threatened  point  of  the  line.  The  station  was  just 
in  front  of  the  mouth  of  the  Bug,  and  commanded 
the  entrance  to  that  river  and  the  Dnieper  as  well, 
thus  protecting  Kherson  from  any  attack  by  the 
Turks,  and  affording  Patiomkine's  troops  a  free  and 
unimpeded  passage  of  the  Bug  when  they  marched 
to  invest  the  town.  The  position  was  most  advan- 
tageously chosen  by  Jones.  His  force  was  too 
weak  to  attack  the  Turks  with  any  hope  of  success 
at  present,  and  he  had  been  ordered  by  Patiomkine 
not  to  enter  upon  any  operation  until  the  Russian 
army  arrived.  Absolutely  no  fault  can  be  found 
either  with  his  location  or  his  dispositions. 

The  Turks  made  no  movement  to  attack  them, 
and  Nassau,  who  was  good  at  proposing  aggressive 
movements  when  no  dangers  threatened,  suggested 
that  they  abandon  their  position  and  move  forward 
nearer  the  town.  Nothing  would  be  gained  by  this 
maneuver,  and  opportunities  for  a  successful  attack 
by  the  Turks  would  have  been  greater  than  in  their 
present  position.  Jones  realized  that  the  Turks 
must  of  necessity  attack  them  sooner  or  later ;  that 
no  commander  could  afford  to  throw  away  such 
'advantage  in  force  as  the  Turks  enjoyed,  when  any 
hour  might  bring  re-enforcements  to  the  Russians, 
and  the  battery  which  Suvofof  had  completed  would 
prevent  further  re-enforcements  being  received  by 


THE    FIRST   ATTACK. 


367 


the  Turks.  So  Jones  grimly  held  to  his  position  in 
spite  of  Nassau's  remonstrances,  which  were  sec- 
onded by  those  of  Alexiano,  and  waited.  To  wait 
is  sometimes  braver  than  to  advance. 

Finally  one  of  the  reasons  for  Nassau's  desire  to 
advance  transpired.  He  wished  to  remove  from 
his  position  near  the  Turkish  shore,  upon  which  bat- 
teries were  being  erected  in  the  absence  of  any 
Russian  land  force  to  prevent  them,  which  would 
subject  the  right  wing  of  his  flotilla  to  a  land  fire ; 
and  he  desired  to  take  a  position  where  he  would 
be  protected  by  the  new  fort  at  Kinburn  Point  and 
by  the  ships  of  the  squadron.  Suvorof  had  made 
Jones  responsible  for  the  safety  of  the  fort  on  Kin- 
burn  Point,  by  the  way,  while  awaiting  the  advance 
of  the  army.  Having  received  no  orders  from  Pati- 
omkine,  Jones  assembled  a  council  of  war  on  the 
Wolodimer,  at  which  Nassau  was  present.  Jones' 
supremacy  was  fully  recognized  by  Nassau.  The 
council  approved  of  the  position  in  which  Jones  had 
placed  his  squadron,  and  commended  his  resolution 
to  maintain  that  position,  and  in  obedience  to  urgent 
pleadings  from  Jones  the  officers  of  the  flotilla  and 
squadron  agreed  to  co-operate  and  work  together 
for  the  common  good  in  the  event  of  being  attacked. 
They  did  not  have  long  to  wait  for  the  inevitable 
encounter. 

On  the  afternoon  of  the  i8th  of  June,  the  Turk- 
ish flotilla  in  two  divisions  made  a  dash  at  the  Rus- 
sian gunboats  on  the  right  flank,  and  a  sharp  en- 
gagement began.  The  Russians,  greatly  outnum- 
bered, began  to  give  ground,  and,  though  the  reserve 
was  immediately  sent  to  support  the  right  wing,  be- 


368  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

fore  the  dashing  attacks  of  the  Turkish  gunboats  the 
retreat  was  not  stayed.  A  battery  of  artillery  which 
had  been  unmasked  on  the  adjacent  shore  also  seri- 
ously annoyed  the  extreme  flank  of  the  Russians. 
On  account  of  the  shoal  water  the  ships  of  the 
squadron  could  not  enter  the  engagement.  Jones, 
therefore,  with  his  instinctive  desire  to  get  into  a 
fight,  left  the  Wolodimer  and  embarked  in  Nassau's 
galley.  That  commander  had  entirely  lost  his  head. 
He  could  think  of  nothing  to  do  of  value,  but  im- 
plored Jones  to  send  him  a  frigate — which  was  im- 
-possible,  for  all  the  frigates  drew  too  much  water; 
failing  this,  he  threatened  to  withdraw  his  right 
wing,  in  which  case  the  Turkish  gunboats  probably 
would  have  taken  the  squadron  in  reverse,  and 
might  have  inflicted  serious  damage.  Jones  con- 
vinced him  that  a  return  attack  was  not  only  neces- 
sary but  inevitable,  and,  as  Nassau  made  no 
objection,  he  assumed  the  direction  of  the  vessels 
himself.  Summoning  the  unengaged  center  and 
left  divisions,  he  brought  them  up  through  the 
squadron  to  attack  the  approaching  Turkish  galleys 
on  the  flank.  The  diversion  they  caused  so  in- 
spirited the  broken  right  and  reserve  divisions  that 
they  made  a  determined  stand  and  stopped  their 
retreat.  The  capitan  pasha,  seeing  himself  in  dan- 
ger of  being  taken  between  two  fires  and  his  retreat 
cut  off,  withdrew  precipitately  before  the  center  and 
the  left  fairly  came  into  action.  Had  Jones  been  in 
command  of  the  flotilla  from  the  beginning,  a  most 
disastrous  defeat  would  have  been  inflicted  upon 
the  Turks.  As  it  was,  they  retreated  in  confusion, 
leaving  two  gunboats  in  the  hands  of  the  enemy. 


ACTION   OF   JUNE    i8TH.  369 

As  the  affair  had  been  conducted  entirely  be- 
tween the  different  flotillas,  Nassau  claimed  all  the 
credit  for  the  brilliant  maneuvers  of  the  Russians. 
Jones  contemptuously  allowed  him  to  make  any 
claims  he  pleased  in  his  report  to  Patiomkine,  and 
gave  Nassau  credit  for  at  least  having  taken  his  ad- 
vice. It  would  have  been  better  for  Nassau's  fame 
if  he  had  continued  to  take  Jones'  advice.  Having 
obtained  this  slight  success,  Nassau,  who  knew  how 
well  his  urgency  would  look  in  the  reports,  again 
proposed  to  Jones  that  they  should  advance  and  at- 
tack. The  Russian  army  had  not  yet  invested  the 
place,  and  the  success  they  had  gained  was  so  slight 
that  circumstances  had  not  changed.  Jones  still  re- 
fused to  be  moved  from  the  position  he  had  as- 
sumed, which  the  experience  of  the  i8th  of  June 
had  justified,  and  calmly  awaited  the  further  pleas- 
ure of  the  enemy.  It  takes  a  high  quality  of  moral 
courage  for  a  stranger,  who  has  a  reputation  for 
audacity  and  intrepidity,  absolutely  to  refuse  to 
do  that  thing  to  which  a  subordinate  urges  him, 
and  which  has  the  appearance  of  courage  and  dar- 
ing; and  I  count  this  refusal,  in  the  interests  of 
sound  strategic  principles,  not  an  unimportant 
manifestation  of  Jones'  qualities  as  an  officer. 

Meanwhile,  the  Russian  army,  having  passed 
the  Bug,  invested  the  city  on  the  28th  of  June,  and 
the  Turkish  fleet  was  forced  to  attack  or  withdraw. 
The  capitan  pasha  elected  to  do  the  former.  Hav- 
ing re-enforced  his  crews  by  some  two  thousand 
picked  men  from  the  great  fleet  outside  the  Liman, 
he  advanced  down  the  bay  to  attack  the  Russians. 

The  wind  was  free,  and  the  Turkish  fleet  came  on 
25 


370  COMMODORE    PAUL   JON7ES. 

in  grand  style,  the  capitan  pasha  leading  in  the 
largest  ship,  with  the  flotilla  of  gunboats  massed 
on  his  left  flank,  making  a  brilliant  showing.  Nas- 
sau's desire  to  advance  suddenly  vanished,  and  he 
clamored  for  a  retreat.  Jones  paid  no  attention  to 
him,  but  weighed  anchor,  and,  as  it  was  impossible 
for  him  to  advance  on  account  of  the  wind,  he 
waited  for  the  enemy.  Fortunately  for  the  Russians, 
at  one  o'clock  in  the  afternoon  the  Turkish  flagship, 
which  had  been  headed  for  the  Wolodimer,  took 
ground  on  the  shoals  near  the  south  shore  of 
the  Liman.  The  advance  of  the  fleet  was  immedi- 
ately stopped,  and  the  Turkish  vessels  came  to  an- 
chor about  the  flagship. 

A  council  of  war  was  at  once  convened  on  the 
Wolodimer,  and  Jones  at  last  persuaded  the  Rus- 
sians, although  inferior  in  force,  to  attack  the  Turks 
as  soon  as  the  wind  permitted.  During  the  night 
the  wind  fortunately  shifted  to  the  north-northeast, 
and  at  daylight  on  the  2Qth  the  squadron  stood  for 
the  Turkish  fleet.  The  Wolodimer  led  the  advance. 
By  hard  work  the  Turkish  admiral  had  succeeded 
in  floating  his  flagship,  but  his  ships  were  huddled 
together  without  order.  Jones  immediately  dashed 
at  him,  opening  fire  from  his  bow  guns  as  he  came 
within  range.  The  squadron  was  formed  in  echelon 
by  bringing  the  van  forward  on  the  center,  making 
another  obtuse  angle,  with  the  opening  toward  the 
crowd  of  Turkish  ships — in  fact,  Jones  was  attempt- 
ing with  his  smaller  force  to  surround  them.  In 
the  confusion  caused  by  the  bold  attack,  the  Turks, 
who  seem  to  have  been  taken  completely  by  sur- 
prise, again  permitted  the  ships  of  the  admiral  and 


BATTLE   OF  JUNE   28x11   AND   29TH.  37  [ 

of  his  second  in  command  to  take  ground.  Jones' 
prompt  approach  and  the  heavy  fire  poured  upon 
them  made  it  impossible  to  float  the  stranded  ships. 
They  both  of  them  keeled  over  on  the  shoal  and 
could  make  no  defense.  Their  flags  were  struck, 
and  they  were  abandoned  by  their  crews.  The 
other  Turkish  ships  were  so  discouraged  by  this 
mishap  that  they  withdrew  toward  Otchakoff,  their 
flight  being  accelerated  by  the  tremendous  fire 
poured  upon  them  by  the  Wolodimer  and  the  other 
Russian  ships.  Just  as  the  Wolodimer  reached  the 
stranded  ship  of  the  capitan  pasha,  Alexiano,  who 
found  himself  sufficiently  near  to  the  enemy, 
ordered  the  anchor  of  the  Wolodimer  to  be  let  go 
without  informing  Jones.  As  the  order  was  given 
in  Russian,  Jones  knew  nothing  about  it  until  the 
motion  of  the  ship  was  stopped. 

There  was  plenty  of  fight  in  the  Turkish  admiral, 
who  seems  to  have  i^een  a  very  gallant  old  fellow, 
for  after  the  loss  of  the  flagship  he  hoisted  his  flag 
on  one  of  the  gunboats  and  brought  up  the  flotilla, 
which  poured  a  furious  fire  from  its  heavy  guns 
upon  the  right  division  of  Jones'  squadron,  to  which 
the  lighter  guns  of  the  ships  could  make  but  little 
reply.  The  situation  became  dangerous  for  the 
squadron.  One  of  the  Russian  frigates,  the  Little 
Alexander,  was  set  on  fire  and  blown  up  by  the 
Turkish  shot,  and  the  fortune  of  the  day  trembled 
in  the  balance. 

The  light-draught  gunboats  each  carried  a  large 
.gun,  heavier,  and  therefore  of  greater  range,  than 
any  on  the  ships.  The  shallow  water  would  not 
permit  the  ships  to  draw  near  enough  to  the  flotilla 


372  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

to  make  effective  use  of  their  greater  number  of 
guns.  Hence,  under  the  circumstances,  the  squad- 
ron was  always  at  the  mercy  of  the  flotilla  unless  by 
some  means  they  could  get  into  close  action,  in 
which  case  the  ships  would  have  made  short  work 
of  the  gunboats.  Jones'  position  was  therefore  one 
of  extreme  peril — untenable,  in  fact,  without  the 
help  of  his  own  flotilla.  The  Russian  flotilla  had 
followed  the  squadron  in  a  very  leisurely  and  dis- 
orderly manner,  so  slowly  that  Jones  had  twice 
checked  the  way  of  his  ships  to  allow  them  to  come 
within  hailing  distance.  He  now  dispatched  a  re- 
quest to  Nassau  to  bring  up  his  gunboats  on  the 
right  flank  and  drive  off  the  Turkish  gunboats, 
thus  enabling  him  to  take  possession  of  the  two 
frigates,  which  had  been  abandoned  by  their  crews, 
and  continue  the  pursuit  of  the  flying  Turkish 
ships. 

No  attention  was  paid  to  this  and  repeated  re- 
quests, and  Jones  finallytook  his  boat  and  went  him- 
self in  search  of  Nassau's  galley  to  entreat  him  to 
attack  the  Turkish  flotilla.  He  found  Nassau  in  the 
rear  of  the  left  flank,  far  from  the  scene  of  action, 
and  bent  only  upon  attacking  the  two  ships  which 
were  incapable  of  defense.  Unable  to  persuade  him 
to  act,  Jones  at  last  appealed  to  Nassau's  second, 
Brigadier  Corsacoff,  who  finally  moved  against  the 
Turks  and  drove  them  off  with  great  loss  after  a 
hard  fight.  Jones  meanwhile  returned  to  the  Wolo- 
dimer — both  journeys  having  been  made  under  a 
furious  fire,  in  the  midst  of  a  general  action,  in 
which  upward  of  thirty-six  ships  of  considerable 
size  and  possibly  a  hundred  gunboats  were  partici- 


NASSAU'S   FOLLY. 


373 


pating — but  before  he  could  get  under  way  Nassau, 
with  some  of  his  flotilla,  surrounded  the  two  aban- 
doned ships  and  set  fire  to  them  by  means  of  a 
peculiar  kind  of  a  bomb  shell  called  brandkugcls 
(hollow  spheres,  filled  with  combustibles  and  per- 
forated with  holes,  which  were  fired  from  a  piece 
called  a  I  iconic).  The  Turkish  fleet  and  flotilla, 
very  much  shattered,  retreated  to  a  safe  position 
under  the  walls  of  Otchakoff,  thus  ending  the  fight- 
ing for  that  day.  Nassau's  action  was  inexcusable. 
The  two  ships  he  so  wantonly  destroyed  would  have 
been  a  valuable  addition  to  the  Russian  navy,  and,  as 
they  were  commanded  by  the  Wolodimer  and  the 
rest  of  the  squadron,  they  could  not  have  been  re- 
captured, and  could  easily  have  been  removed  from 
the  shoals. 

The  Turkish  defeat  had  been  a  severe  one,  but 
the  only  trophy  which  remained  in  the  hands  of  the 
Russians  was  the  flag  of  the  capitan  pasha.  A  shot 
from  one  of  the  gunboats  having  carried*  it  away,  it 
fell  into  the  water,  whence  it  was  picked  up  by  some 
Zaporojian  boatmen,  who  brought  it  to  the  Prince 
of  Nassau's  boat.  Jones  happened  to  be  on  board 
of  it  at  the  time.  The  flag  certainly  belonged  to 
him,  but  he  magnanimously  yielded  it  to  Nassau 
in  the  hope  of  pacifying  that  worthless  individual. 
It  was  by  this  time  late  in  the  afternoon,  but  Jones 
gave  orders  to  get  under  way  toward  Otchakoff. 
Now  was  the  proper  time  to  advance  and  deliver 
a  return  blow  upon  the  broken  enemy,  but  now 
Nassau  desired  to  remain  where  he  was.  Jones  was 
inflexible  as  usual,  and  determined  to  finish  the  job 
so  auspiciously  begun.  Accordingly,  the  anchor  of 


374 


COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 


the  Wolodimer  was  lifted  and  she  got  under  way, 
followed  by  the  remaining  ships  of  the  squadron. 
Having  approached  as  near  to  Otchakoff  as  the 
shoal  water  permitted,  Jones  anchored  his  vessels 
across  the  channel  in  such  a  position  as  to  cover  the 


JTu.6i.rn  fl>inS»,     I**1-''''"'  ,'''         "^J^S 

B«t«W\      .,•••     .•'         ~~  *- 


MAP  OF  THE 

RUSSIAN  CAMPAIGN 

ON  THE 

LIMAN 


II  Central  Action  June  28-29. 

III  Dettruftim  of  Turkieh  Fleet 
after  the  battle . 

IV  Attack  an  Turtitlt  yalleft 

Iff  Jona  and  theHuainn  FotUla 


passage  to  the  sea.  If  the  Turkish  vessels  attempted 
to  escape,  they  would  have  to  pass  under  the  guns 
of  the  squadron,  and  would  find  themselves  within 
easy  range  of  the  formidable  battery  at  Kinburn 
Point.  Nassau's  flotilla  at  last  following,  the  squad- 
ron was  massed  on  the  right  flank. 

The  Turkish  fleet  and  flotilla  were  drawn  up  in 
line  parallel  to  the  Russians,  under  cover  of  the 


A    BOLD    RECONNOISANCE. 


375 


Otchakoff  batteries ;  they  still  presented  a  threat- 
ening appearance,  but  the  severe  handling  they  had 
received  during  the  day  had  taken  much  of  the  fight 
out  of  them.  Having  disposed  his  squadron  and 
flotilla  to  the  best  advantage,  and  being  unable  to 
proceed  further  without  coming  under  the  fire  of 
the  heavy  Otchakoff  batteries,  there  was  nothing 
left  for  Jones  but  to  hold  his  position  and  wait 
another  attack. 

In  order,  however,  to  familiarize  himself  with  the 
field  of  future  operations,  and  see  if  he  had  properly 
placed  his  force,  just  before  sunset  he  took  sound- 
ings in  a  small  boat  all  along  the  Turkish  line  within 
range  of  case  shot  from  the  Otchakoff  batteries,  and 
from  the  Turkish  ships  as  well.  His  action  was  a 
part  of  his  impudent  hardihood.  His  dashing  at- 
tack had  so  discouraged  the  Turks,  and  his  success 
of  the  morning  had  so  disheartened  them,  that  not 
a  single  gun  was  fired  upon  him.  Having  com- 
pleted his  investigations  to  his  satisfaction,  he  re- 
turned to  the  flagship. 

That  night  the  Turkish  admiral  attempted  to 
escape  with  his  remaining  ships  and  rejoin  his  main 
fleet  on  the  Black  Sea  outside  of  Kinburn  Point. 
In  an  endeavor  to  avoid  Jones'  squadron  on  the  one 
hand,  and  the  battery  on  the  point  on  the  other,  nine 
of  his  largest  ships  ran  on  a  shoal.  The  attempt  to 
escape  was  made  under  the  fire  of  the  fort  and 
ships,  in  which  the  flotillas  and  Fort  Hassan  joined. 
A  few  of  the  ships  succeeded  in  getting  to  sea ;  the 
rest  were  forced  to  return  to  their  position  of  safety 
under  the  walls  of  Otchakoff. 

When  morning  came,  the  plight  of  the  nine  ships 


376  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

aground  was  plainly  visible.  Suvorof,  who  had 
commanded  the  Kinburn  battery  in  person  that 
night,  immediately  signaled  Jones  to  send  vessels 
to  take  possession  of  the  Turkish  ships.  Jones  de- 
cided to  send  the  light  frigates  of  his  squadron,  but 
it  being  represented  to  him  by  Brigadier  Alexiano 
that  the  place  where  the  Turks  had  grounded  was 
dangerous  and  the  current  running  like  a  mill 
stream  with  the  ebb  tide,  upon  the  advice  of  his 
captains  he  turned  over  the  duty  of  taking  posses- 
sion of  the  Turkish  ships  to  the  flotilla.  Alexiano, 
having  received  permission,  went  with  the  Prince  of 
Nassau. 

The  boats  of  the  flotilla  soon  reached  the  Turkish 
ships.  When  they  came  within  range  of  them  they 
opened  a  furious  fire,  to  which  the  latter  made  no 
reply.  In  their  helpless  position,  heeling  every  way 
upon  the  shoal,  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  make 
any  defense.  They  struck  their  flags  and  surren- 
dered their  ships.  The  Russian  gunboats  paid  no 
attention  whatever  to  this  circumstance,  but  con- 
tinued to  fire  upon  them,  drawing  nearer  and  nearer 
as  they  realized  the  helplessness  of  the  Turks.  Re- 
sorting to  brandkugcls  again,  they  at  last  set  the 
ships  on  fire.  The  hapless  Turks  in  vain  implored 
mercy,  kneeling  upon  the  decks  and  even  making 
the  sign  of  the  cross  in  the  hope  of  touching  the 
hearts  of  their  ruthless  and  bloodthirsty  antagonists. 
Seven  frigates  and  corvettes  were  burned  to  the 
water's  edge  with  all  their  crews.  It  is  estimated 
that  about  three  thousand  Turks  perished  in  this 
brutal  and  frightful  butchery.  Nassau  and  Alexiano 
enjoyed  the  situation  from  a  galley  at  a  safe  dis,- 


RUSSIAN   CRUELTY.  377 

tance  in  the  rear  of  the  attacking  force.  By  chance 
two  of  the  vessels  were  not  consumed,  and  were 
hauled  off  later  and  added  to  the  squadron. 

'  Jones  viewed  the  dreadful  slaughter  of  the  Turks 
with  unmitigated  horror  and  surprise.  A  man  of 
merciful  disposition  and  kindly  heart,  who  never  in- 
flicted unnecessary  suffering,  he  was  shocked  and 
revolted  at  the  ferocity  of  his  new  associates.  He 
protested  against  their  action  with  all  his  energy, 
and  laid  the  foundation  thereby  of  an  utter  break- 
down of  the  relations  between  Nassau  and  himself. 
Besides  being  horribly  cruel,  the  whole  perform- 
ance was  unnecessary.  Like  the  two  ships  burned 
the  day  before,  it  was  possible  to  have  saved  them, 
and  they  could  have  been  added  to  Jones'  command 
and  would  have  doubled  his  effective  force.  After 
the  destruction  of  the  Turkish  vessels  Nassau  and 
Alexiano  immediately  dispatched  a  report  of  the 
operations  to  Patiomkine.  They  claimed  that  the 
flotilla  had  captured  two  and  burned  nine  ships  of 
the  line ! 

Patiomkine,  who  was  at  this  time  extremely  fond 
of  Nassau,  forwarded  this  preposterous  statement  to 
the  empress,  with  strong  expressions  of  approbation 
of  Nassau's  conduct.  He  gave  him  the  whole  credit 
of  the  victory,  which  was  entirely  due  to  Jones,  and 
suppressed  the  fact  of  his  ruthless  and  reckless  de- 
struction of  the  surrendered  ships,  which  would 
have  been  so  valuable  a  re-enforcement  to  the  gov- 
ernment. In  this  report  Patiomkine  also  spoke  fa- 
vorably of  the  rear  admiral,  saying  that  he  had  done 
his  duty,  but  that  the  particular  glory  of  and  credit 
for  the  success  was  due  to  the  princeling  who  had 


378  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

hung  on  the  outskirts  and  lagged  behind  when  there 
was  any  real  fighting  to  be  done. 

For  some  ten  days  the  naval  force  remained  in- 
active, waiting  for  Patiomkine  to  complete  his  in- 
vestment of  the  town.  On  the  night  of  the  8th  of 
July  the  marshal  sent  orders  to  Nassau  to  advance 
with  his  flotilla  and  destroy  the  Turkish  flotilla  un- 
der the  walls  of  Otchakoff.  Jones  was  commanded 
to  give  him  every  assistance  possible.  The  weather 
prevented  the  carrying  out  of  the  orders  for  a  few 
days.  On  the  night  of  the  I2th  of  July,  however, 
at  one  o'clock  in  the  morning,  the  advance  began. 
The  plan  of  attack  had  been  arranged  by  the  mar- 
shal himself,  but  circumstances  prevented  its  being 
followed.  But  that  did  not  matter ;  Patiomkine  was 
not  a  military  genius,  and  Jones  knew  very  much 
better  than  he  what  could  or  should  be  done  in  a 
naval  engagement.  As  it  was  impossible  to  use 
the  ships  of  the  squadron,  Jones  manned  all  his 
boats,  and  led  them  to  tow  the  gunboats. 

As  day  broke  on  the  I2th  of  July,  the  flotilla, 
having  advanced  within  gunshot  distance  of  the 
walls,  began  firing  upon  the  Turkish  boats  and  on 
Otchakoff  itself.  After  assisting  in  placing  the  Rus- 
sian gunboats  in  an  advantageous  position,  Jones, 
with  the  boats  of  the  Wolodimer,  made  for  five  of 
the  enemy's  galleys  which  lay  within  easy  range  of 
the  heavy  guns  of  Fort  Hassan.  These  galleys  were 
subjected  to  a  cross  fise  from  the  Russian  flotilla  on 
one  side  and  Fort  Hassan  on  the  other.  They  were 
also  covered  by  the  guns  of  the  Turkish  flotilla  and 
the  citadel  of  Otchakoff.  Their  position  made  the 
attack  a  most  hazardous  one.  Jones  was  far  in  ad- 


HAND-TO-HAND   FIGHTING. 


379 


vance  of  the  gunboats,  which,  under  the  supine 
leadership  of  Nassau,  did  not  manifest  a  burning 
anxiety  to  get  into  close  action.  In  spite  of  a  furi- 
ous fire  which  was  poured  upon  them,  Jones  dashed 
gallantly  at  the  nearest  galley.  It  was  taken  by 
boarding  after  a  fierce  hand-to-hand  fight.  Turn- 
ing the  command  of  the  galley  over  to  Lieutenant 
Fabricien  with  instructions  for  him  to  tow  her  out 
of  action,  Jones  then  assaulted  the  next  galley,  which 
happened  to  be  that  of  the  capitan  pasha.  This  boat 
lay  nearer  the  fort  and  was  much  better  defended, 
but  the  Russians,  under  the  inspiring  leadership  of 
their  admiral,  would  not  be  denied,  and  the  galley 
was  presently  his  prize.  The  cable  of  this  boat  was 
cut  without  order,  and  she  immediately  drifted  to- 
ward the  shore  and  took  ground  near  Fort  Hassan, 
where  she  was  subjected  to  a  smashing  fire  from  the 
Turkish  batteries  close  at  hand.  Jones  was  deter- 
mined to  bring  out  the  boat  as  a  prize  if  possible. 
He  caused  the  galley  to  be  lightened  by  throwing 
everything  movable  overboard,  and  meanwhile  dis- 
patched Lieutenant  Fox  to  the  Wolodimer  to  fetch 
a  kedge  and  line,  by  which  he  could  warp  her  into 
the  channel. 

While  waiting  for  the  return  of  this  officer  he 
again  manned  his  boats  and  endeavored  to  bring 
up  the  Russian  flotilla.  He  was  partially  successful 
in  this  attempt,  for  they  succeeded  in  compelling  the 
three  other  galleys  of  the  group  with  which  he  had 
been  engaged  to  strike  their  flags  and  in  forcing  the 
other  gunboats  to  retreat  with  severe  loss.  When 
Fox  returned  from  the  Wolodimer  a  line  was  run 
from  the  galley  to  the  burned  wreck  of  a  Turkish 


380  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

ship,  but,  before  the  galley  could  be  moved,  Jones, 
who  had  re-entered  his  barge,  was  intensely  sur- 
prised and  annoyed  to  see  fire  break  out  on  the  two 
vessels  he  had  captured.  They  had  been  deliber- 
ately set  on  fire  by  the  orders  of  Alexiano.  The 
other  three  Turkish  galleys  were  also  burned  by  the 
use  of  the  deadly  brandkugcls.  Tt  was  brutal  cruelty 
again.  Not  one  was  saved  from  the  five  galleys  ex- 
cept fifty-two  prisoners  whom  Jones  personally 
brought  off  in  his  boats  from  the  two  which  he  had 
captured  by  hard  hand-to-hand  fighting.  These 
galleys  appear  to  have  been  propelled  by  oars  which 
were  driven  by  slaves  on  benches,  in  the  well-known 
manner  of  the  middle  ages.  As  they  were  Turkish 
galleys,  the  slaves  were  probably  captive  Christians. 
They  perished  with  the  Turks  left  on  board.  Two 
more  ships  belonging  to  the  squadron  which  had 
endeavored  to  escape  the  wreek  previous,  were  set 
on  fire  and  burned  under  the  w-alls  of  Fort  Hassan. 
The  rest  of  the  flotilla  effected  nothing,  and  under 
the  orders  of  Nassau  withdrew  to  their  former  posi- 
tion. 

This  action  ended  the  general  naval  maneuvers 
which  were  undertaken.  In  this  short  and  brilliant 
campaign  of  three  weeks  Jones  had  fought  four 
general  actions,  all  of  which  he  personally  directed. 
With  fifteen  vessels  against  twenty-one  he  had  so 
maneuvered  that  the  enemy  lost  many  galleys  and 
no  less  than  thirteen  of  his  ships  ;  a  few  had  escaped, 
and  a  few  were  locked  up  in  the  harbor,  so  that  the 
Turkish  naval  force  in  the  Liman  was  not  only  de- 
feated but  practically  annihilated  by  Jones'  brilliant 
and  successful  leadership  and  fighting.  Eleven 


A   BRILLIANT   CAMPAIGN.  381 

ships  might  have  been  prizes  had  it  not  been  for 
the  cruelty  and  criminal  folly  of  Nassau.  Jones  had 
captured  by  hand-to-hand  righting  two  of  the 
largest  of  the  enemy's  galleys.  He  had  shown  him- 
self a  strategist  in  his  disposition  of  the  fleet  at  the 
mouth  of  the  Bug,  and  later,  when  he  had  placed  it 
to  command  the  mouth  of  the  Liman.  He  had 
demonstrated  his  qualities  as  a  tactician  in  the  two 
boat  attacks,  and  had  shown  his  usual  impetuous 
courage  at  all  times.  Nassau  had  done  nothing  that 
was  wise  or  that  was  gallant.  When  Jones  was  not 
with  him  his  tendency  was  always  to  retreat.  The 
orders  which  brought  the  flotilla  into  action  which 
made  the  brilliant  combination  on  the  first  day's 
fight,  by  which  the  Turks  were  outflanked,  were 
issued  by  Jones  himself. 

Nassau,  like  Landais,  was  "  skilled  in  keeping  out 
of  harm's  way,"  and  he  did  not  personally  get  into 
action  at  any  time.  His  services  consisted  in  the 
useless  burning  of  the  nine  ships  and  the  five  gal- 
leys, but  he  had  a  ready  tongue,  and  he  still  enjoyed 
the  full  favor  .and  confidence  of  Patiomkine.  As 
soon  as  the  flotilla  had  retired  from  the  last  conflict, 
he  and  Alexfano  hastened  to  the  army  headquarters 
to  report  their  conquests  and  exploits.  They  lost 
nothing  in  the  telling.  In  accordance  with  Nassau's 
previous  statement  to  Jones,  they  were  very  much 
exaggerated,  and  the  actions  of  the  rear  admiral 
were  accorded  scant  notice. 

Patiomkine  received  the  two  cowards  graciously, 
and,  as  usual,  forwarded  their  reports.  Jones  was 
not  accustomed  to  this  performance,  and  in  igno- 
rance of  their  actions  took  no  steps  to  establish  the 


382  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

value  of  his  services  beyond  making  a  report  of  what 
he  had  done  in  the  usual  way — a  report  quietly 
suppressed.  Two  days  after  Alexiano  returned  on 
board  the  Wolodimer  in  the  throes  of  a  malignant 
fever,  of  which  he  died  on  the  iQth  of  July.  It  had 
been  asserted  that  every  Greek  in  the  squadron 
would  immediately  resign  upon  the  death  of  Alexi- 
ano, but  nothing  of  the  kind  took  place.  The 
Greeks,  like  the  English  and  the  Russians,  remained 
contentedly  under  the  command  of  the  rear  admiral. 
On  the  day  he  died  Catherine  granted  Alexiano  a 
fine  estate  in  White  Russia.  At  the  same  time  Nas- 
sau received  a  valuable  estate  with  several  thousand 
serfs  in  White  Russia,  and  the  military  order  of  St. 
George.  The  empress  also  directed  him  to  hoist 
the  flag  of  a  vice  admiral  when  Otchakoff  surren- 
dered. Jones  received  the  minor  order  of  St.  Anne, 
an-  order  with  which  he  would  have  been  perfectly 
satisfied  if  the  other  officers  had  been  awarded  noth- 
ing more. 

All  the  officers  of  the  flotilla  were  promoted  one 
step,  and  received  a  year's  pay  with  a  gold-mounted 
sword.  They  were  most  of  them  soldiers.  The  offi- 
cers of  the  squadron,  who  were  all  sailors,  and  who 
had  conducted  themselves  gallantly  and  well,  ob- 
tained no  promotion,  received  no  pecuniary  reward, 
and  no  mark  of  distinction  was  conferred  upon 
them.  They  were  naturally  indignant  at  being  so 
slighted,  but  when  Jones  promised  them  that  he 
would  demand  justice  for  them  at  the  close  of  the 
campaign,  they  stifled  their  vexation  and  continued 
their  service. 

It  is  evident  that  the  failure  to  ascribe  the  vie- 


RUPTURE   WITH    NASSAU.  383 

tory  to  Jones  was  due  to  Patiomkine,  and  his  action 
in  giving  the  credit  to  Nassau  was  deliberate.  Jones 
and  Nassau  had  seriously  disagreed.  The  scorn 
which  ability  and  courage  feel  for  inefficiency  and 
cowardice  had  not  been  concealed  by  the  admiral ; 
he  had  been  outspoken  in  his  censure,  and  not  re- 
served in  his  strictures  upon  Nassau's  conduct.  He 
had  treated  the  ideas  and  suggestions  of  that  foolish 
commander  with  the  indifference  they  merited,  and 
had  allowed  no  opportunity  to  pass  of  exhibiting 
his  contempt — which  was  natural,  but  impolitic. 

He  seems  to  have  made  the  effort  in  the  begin- 
ning to  get  along  pleasantly  with  Nassau,  and  to 
work  with  him  for  the  good  of  the  service ;  but,  after 
the  demonstration  of  Nassau's  lack  of  character  and 
capacity  in  the  first  action,  and  after  the  repeated 
failure  of  the  prince  to  maneuver  the  flotilla  in  the 
most  ordinary  manner,  Jones  lost  all  patience  with 
him.  Patiomkine  had  endeavored  to  establish  har- 
mony and  good  feeling  between  the  two,  not  only  by 
letters,  but  by  a  personal  visit  which  he  paid  the  rear 
admiral  on  the  Wolodimer  on  the  29th  of  June.  He 
did  everything  on  that  occasion  to  persuade  Nassau 
to' make  an  apology  for  some  remarks  he  had  ad- 
dressed to  Jones  previously,  and,  having  done  so, 
effected  some  kind  of  a  reconciliation,  but  the  dif- 
ferences between  them  were  so  wide — Nassau  was 
so  worthless  and  Jones  so  capable,  while  both  were 
hot-tempered — that  the  breach  between  them  was 
greater  than  before. 

Between  the  two  Patiomkine,  while  not  at  first 
unfriendly  to  Jones,  much  preferred  Nassau. 
Hence  his  action.  Not  only  did  Patiomkine  enjoin 


384  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

harmony,  but  Littlepage,  the  American,  whom  we 
have  seen  before  as  the  chamberlain  of  the  King 
of  Poland,  who  had  accepted  the  command  of  one 
of  the  ships  under  Jones,  also  wrote  him  to  the 
same  effect. 

Jones  received  his  letter  in  the  spirit  in  which  it 
was  written,  and  assured  the  writer  that  he  had 
borne  more  from  Nassau  than  he  would  have  done 
from  any  other  than  a  madman,  and  he  promised  to 
continue  to  try  to  do  so.  The  effort  was  a  failure. 
Littlepage  himself,  unable  to  endure  the  animosities 
engendered  between  the  squadron  and  the  flotilla, 
threw  up  his  command  and  returned  to  Warsaw. 
His  parting  counsel  to  Jones  showed  that  he  well 
understood  the  situation. 

"  Farewell,  my  dear  admiral ;  take  care  of  your- 
self, and  look  to  whom  you  trust.  Remember  that 
you  have  rather  to  play  the  part  of  a  politician  than 
a  warrior — more  of  a  courtier  than  a  soldier." 

Jones  indorsed  upon  this  note  the  following  re- 
mark: 

"  I  was  not  skilled  in  playing  such  a  part.  I 
never  neglected  my  duty." 

To  resume  the  narrative :  After  the  defeat  in  the 
Liman,  the  grand  Turkish  fleet  sailed  away  from 
Otchakoff,  which  was  then  strictly  blockaded  by 
Jones'  squadron,  assisted  by  thirty-five  armed  boats 
which  had  been  placed  under  his  command.  At 
the  end  of  July  the  Turkish  fleet,  having  had  an 
indecisive  engagement  with  the  Russians  at  Sebas- 
topol,  returned  to  Otchakoff.  Preparations  were 


BLOCKADING   OTCHAKOFF.  385 

made  by  Jones  to  receive  an  attack,  but  none  was 
delivered.  Three  ships  attempted  to  run  the  block- 
ade :  one  was  sunk,  and  the  others  got  in  with  dif- 
ficulty. Nothing  of  importance  happened  during 
the  months  of  August  and  September,  in  which 
Jones  continued  an  effective  blockade,  although  he 
undertook  some  minor  operations  at  the  request  of 
the  marshal. 

Patiomkine  carried  on  the  siege  in  a  very  des- 
ultory manner.  In  accordance  with  his  contradic- 
tory nature  he  sometimes  pressed  operations  vigor- 
ously, and  then  for  weeks  did  nothing.  He  seems  to 
have  had  a  harem  in  his  camp,  which  perhaps  ac- 
counts for  his  dawdling.  Nassau,  with  his  usual 
boastfulness,  sent  word  to  Patiomkine  that  if  he  had 
permission  he  would  take  the  boats  of  the  flotilla 
and  knock  a  breach  in  the  walls  of  Otchakoff  big 
enough  to  admit  two  regiments ;  whereupon  Pati- 
omkine asked  him  wittily  how  many  breaches  he 
had  made  in  Gibraltar,  and  removed  him  from  his 
command.  He  was  sent  northward,  where  he  still 
managed  to  hold  the  favor  of  the  empress.  This 
did  not  greatly  improve  Jones'  situation,  however, 
for  the  relations  between  him  and  Patiomkine  had 
become  so  strained  as  to  be  impossible. 

On  the  24th  of  October  Patiomkine  sent  him 
the  following  order : 

"  As  it  is  seen  that  the  capitan  pasha  comes  in 
his  kirlangich  from  the  grand  fleet  to  the  smaller 
vessels,  and  as  before  quitting  this  he  may  attempt 
something,  I  request  your  excellence,  the  capitan 
pasha  having  actually  a  greater  number  of  vessels, 
26 


386  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

to  hold  yourself  in  readiness  to  receive  him  cour- 
ageously, and  drive  him  back.  I  require  that  this 
be  done  without  loss  of  time ;  if  not,  you  will  be 
made  answerable  for  every  neglect." 

Indorsing  this  insulting  document  as  follows : 
"  A  warrior  is  always  ready,  and  I  had  not  come 
there  an  apprentice,"  Jones  immediately  returned  a 
spirited  answer,  part  of  which  is  quoted : 

"  MONSEIGNEUR  :  I  have  the  honour  to  transmit 
to  your  highness  a  plan  of  the  position  in  which  I 
placed  the  squadron  under  my  command  this  morn- 
ing, in  conformity  to  your  orders  of  yesterday.  .  .  . 
I  have  always  conformed  myself  immediately,  with- 
out murmuring,  and  most  exactly,  to  the  commands 
of  your  highness ;  and  on  occasions  when  you  have 
deigned  to  leave  anything  to  my  own  discretion  I 
have  been  exceedingly  flattered,  and  believe  you 
have  had  no  occasion  to  repent.  At  present,  in  case 
the  capitan  pacha  does  resolve  on  attempting  any- 
thing before  his  departure,  I  can  give  assurance  be- 
forehand that  the  brave  officers  and  crews  I  have 
the  honour  to  command  will  do  their  duty  '  cour- 
ageously,' though  they  have  not  yet  been  rewarded 
for  the  important  services  they  have  already  per- 
formed for  the  empire  under  my  eyes.  I  answer 
with  my  honour  to  explain  myself  fairly  on  this  deli- 
cate point  at  the  end  of  the  campaign.  In  the 
meantime  I  may  merely  say  that  it  is  upon  the 
sacred  promise  I  have  given  them  of  demanding 
justice  from  your  highness  in  their  behalf  that  they 
have  consented  to  stifle  their  grievances  and  keep 
silent." 


QUARREL  WITH    PATIOMKINE.  387 

This  provoked  a  reply  from  Patiomkine  and  an- 
other tart  rejoinder  from  Jones.  The  correspond- 
ence, in  which  on  one  occasion  Jones  had  stated 
that  "  every  man  who  thinks  is  master  of  his  own 
opinion,  and  this  is  mine  " — good  doctrine  for  the 
United  States,  impossible  in  Russia — terminated  by 
another  order  from  Patiomkine,  which  closed  as 
follows : 

"  Should  the  enemy  attempt  to  pass  Oczakow, 
prevent  him  by  every  means  and  defend  yourself 
courageously." 

Jones'  indorsement  on  this  document  was  as 
follows : 

"  It  will  be  hard  to  believe  that  Prince  Potem- 
kin  addressed  such  words  to  Paul  Jones !  " 

But  the  patience  of  the  prince  had  reached  its 
limit,  and  on  the  28th  he  summarily  relieved  Jones 
of  his  command,  and  replaced  him  by  Vice-Admiral 
Mordwinoff,  who  had  received  him  so  coldly  when 
he  arrived  at  Kherson  six  months  before. 

The  order  relieving  him  is  as  follows : 

"  According  to  the  special  desire  of  her  Imperial 
Majesty,  your  service  is  fixed  in  the  northern  seas ; 
and  as  this  squadron  and  the  flotilla  are  placed  by 
me  under  the  orders  of  the  vice  admiral  and  the 
Chevalier  de  Mordwinoff,  your  excellency  may  in 
consequence  proceed  on  the  voyage  directed ;  prin- 
cipally, as  the  squadron  in  the  Liman,  on  account  of 
the  season  being  so  far  advanced,  can  not  now  be 
united  with  that  of  Sevastopol." 


388  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

The  northern  sea  service  was  only  a  pretext,  but 
on  the  3Oth  Jones  replied  with  the  following  brief 
note : 

"  I  am  much  flattered  that  her  Majesty  yet 
deigns  to  interest  herself  about  me ;  but  what  I  shall 
ever  regret  is  the  loss  of  your  regard.  I  will  not 
say  that  it  is  not  difficult  to  find  more  skilful  sea 
officers  than  myself — I  know  well  that  it  is  a  very 
possible  thing;  but  I  feel  emboldened  to  say  that 
you  will  never  find  a  man  more  susceptible  of  a 
faithful  attachment  or  more  zealous  in  the  discharge 
of  his  duty.  I  forgive  my  enemies  who  are  near 
you  for  the  painful  blow  aimed  at  me ;  but  if  there 
is  a  just  God,  it  will  be  difficult  for  Him  to  do  as 
much." 

Patiomkine  was  intensely  angered  by  this  note, 
and  he  took  serious  exception  to  the  implication 
that  he  had  been  influenced  against  Jones  by  any 
one.  Jones  states  in  one  of  his  letters  that  when  he 
took  leave  of  Patiomkine  a  few  days  afterward,  the 
prince  remarked  with  much  anger : 

"  Don't  believe  that  anyone  leads  me.  No  one 
leads  me !  "  he  shouted,  rising  and  stamping  his 
foot,  "  not  even  the  Empress !  " — which  was  correct. 
The  jesting  interrogation  with  which  Catherine 
closes  one  of  her  letters  to  Patiomkine  by  saying, 
"  Have  I  done  well,  -my  master  ?  "  contained  much 
truth.  However,  he  moderated  his  tone  somewhat 
in  the  face  of  the  sturdy  dignity  of  Jones,  and,  before 
the  admiral  started  for  St.  Petersburg,  Patiomkine 
gave  him  the  following  letter  to  the  empress : 


RETURNS    TO   ST.   PETERSBURG. 


389 


"  MADAM  :  In  sending  to  the  high  throne  of  your 
Imperial  Majesty  Rear-Admiral  M.  Paul  Jones,  I 
take,  with  submission,  the  liberty  of  certifying  the 
eagerness  and  zeal  which  he  has  ever  shown  for  the 
service  of  your  Imperial  Majesty,  and  to  render 
himself  worthy  of  the  high  favour  of  your  Imperial 
Majesty." 

Having  given  the  officers  he  commanded,  who 
seem  to  have  become  much  attached  to  him,  testi- 
monials as  to  the  high  value  of  their  services,  Jones 
embarked  in  a  small  open  galley  on  the  ist  of  De- 
cember for  Kherson.  He  was  three  days  and  three 
nights  on  the  way,  and  suffered  greatly  from  the 
extreme  cold.  He  arrived  at  Kherson  dangerously 
ill,  and  was  unable  to  proceed  upon  his  journey  until 
the  i /th  of  December.  When  he  reached  Eliza- 
bethgrad  he  received  word  that  Otchakoft"  had  been 
taken  by  storm  the  day  he  had  departed  from  Kher- 
son ;  over  twenty  thousand  Turks  were  put  to  the 
sword  on  that  occasion.  He  arrived  at  St.  Peters- 
burg on  the  8th  of  January,  1789,  and  was  ordered 
to  appear  at  court  on  the  nth,  when  the  empress 
awarded  him  a  private  interview,  at  which  he  pre- 
sented the  letter  of  Patiomkine.  A  few  days  after- 
ward Catherine  sent  him  word  that  she  would  wait 
the  arrival  of  the  prince  before  deciding  what  to  do 
with  him. 


CHAPTER  XIX. 

SLANDERED    IN    RUSSIA — A    SLAVONIC    REWARD    FOR 
FAITHFUL    SERVICES. 

PATIOMKINE  did  not  reach  St.  Petersburg  until 
the  middle  of  February,  and  while  waiting  for  him 
Jones  busied  himself  with  formulating  suggestions 
for  a  political  and  commercial  alliance  between 
Russia  and  the  United  States,  one  feature  of  which 
involved  an  attack  upon  Algiers.  In  addition  to 
holding  a  large  number  of  American  prisoners  in 
captivity,  the  Algerines  had  made  common  cause 
with  the  Turks,  and  had  been  present  in  large  num- 
bers before  Otchakoff.  When  Patiomkine  did  ar- 
rive, the  project  was  submitted  to  him,  but  it  was 
not  thought  expedient  to  attempt  it  at  the  time,  lest 
it  should  result  in  the  irritation  of  England.  Dur- 
ing this  time  the  commodore  wrote  to  Jefferson  and 
learned  for  the  first  time  that  all  the  letters  he  had 
written  since  he  entered  the  Russian  service  had  been 
intercepted.  When  he  examined  the  official  reports 
concerning  his  actions,  which  had  been  forwarded 
from  the  Liman,  he  found  that  he  had  been  grossly 
misrepresented,  and  the  reports  were  false  even  to 
the  most  trifling  details. 

His  situation  was  very  different  from  what  it 
had  been  when  he  entered  St.  Petersburg  before. 
390 


AN   AWFUL   CHARGE. 


391 


Antagonized  secretly  by  Patiomkine,  and  openly  by 
Nassau  and  the  English  at  court,  his  favor  appre- 
ciably waned.  The  old  story  about  the  insubordi- 
nate carpenter  whom  he  had  punished  in  the  West 
Indies  was  revived,  and  in  its  new  version  the  car- 
penter became  his  nephew,  and  it  was  stated  that  he 
had  flogged  him  to  death.  This  was  the  precursor 
of  a  more  deadly  scandal.  His  occasional  invita- 
tions to  court  functions  became  less  and  less  fre- 
quent, and  the  coldness  in  official  circles  more 
and  more  marked.  Finally,  in  the  month  of  April, 
when  he  appeared  at  the  palace  to  pay  his  respects 
to  the  empress,  he  was  refused  admittance,  and 
unceremoniously  ordered  to  leave  the  precincts. 

This  deadly  insult,  this  public  disgrace,  which 
of  course  at  once  became  a  matter  of  general  knowl- 
edge, was  due  to  a  most  degrading  accusation 
made  against  his  character.  To  discover  the  origin 
of  this  slander  is  difficult  indeed.  In  the  first  flush 
of  his  anger  Jones  specifically  charged  that  his  Eng- 
lish enemies,  whose  animosities  were  not  softened 
by  time,  were  the  authors  of  the  calumny.  It  is  im- 
possible to  believe  that  any  English  officer  could 
descend  to  such  depths,  nor  is  it  necessary  to  credit 
the  report  that  his  disgrace  was  due  to  them.  The 
Russian  court  was  as  full  of  intrigue  as  that  of  an 
Oriental  despot.  Jones  was  out  of  favor.  He  had 
succeeded  in  creating  powerful  enemies  for  himself 
in  Nassau  and  Patiomkine.  The  latter  gentleman 
had  negatived  a  promising  plan  in  the  hope  of  there- 
by pleasing  England,  with  whom  Russia  was  now 
coquetting.  If  he  were  the  instigator  of  the  cabal 
against  Jones,  he  might  have  thought  the  disgrace 


392  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 

of  the  man  they  hated  would  gratify  the  English 
people.  If  he  could  bring  this  about  without  com- 
promising himself  he  would  not  hesitate  to  take  the 
required  action.  Nassau  had  very  strong  reasons 
for  hating  Jones,  who  made  no  secret  of  his  con- 
tempt for  that  pseudo  princeling.  At  any  rate, 
whatever  the  source  or  origin,  there  is  no  doubt 
as  to  the  situation. 

Jones  was  accused  of  having  outraged  a  young 
girl  of  menial  station,  who  was  only  ten  years  old ! 
The  charge  was  false  from  beginning  to  end.  It 
had  absolutely  no  foundation,  but  with  the  peculiar 
methods  in  vogue  in  Russia,  it  was  not  easy  to  estab- 
lish his  innocence.  He  was  not  only  presumed,  but 
was  declared  guilty,  without  investigation.  The 
advocate  he  employed  was  ordered  to  abandon  his 
case,  and  he  found  himself  in  the  position  of  one 
condemned  beyond  hope  with  no  opportunity  for 
justification.  He-  was  ever  jealous  on  the  point 
of  his  personal  honor,  and  to  see  himself  thus 
cruelly  stigmatized  at  the  close  of  a  long,  honor- 
able, and  brilliant  career  nearly  drove  him  frantic. 
After  exhausting  unavailingly  every  means  to  force 
a  consideration  of  his  case  and  an  examination 
of  evidence  which  he  succeeded  in  securing  with 
great  difficulty,  he  fell  into  despair  and  seriously 
contemplated  suicide.  He  was  not  the  man  that 
he  had  been.  Already  within  a  few  years  of  his 
death,  although  only  forty-one,  his  constitution 
was  so  broken  that  his  strength  was  seriously 
undermined. 

Providence  raised  up  for  him  a  friend  in  the 
person  of  de  Segur,  the  French  ambassador  at 


APPEAL   TO    PATIOMKINE. 


393 


Catherine's  court.  This  man  should  be  held  in  eter- 
nal gratitude  by  all  Americans — nay,  by  all  who 
love  honor  and  fair  play — for  he  did  not  permit  him- 
self to  be  influenced,  as  is  the  wont  of  courtiers, 
by  the  withdrawal  of  royal  favor  from  the  chevalier, 
whom  he  had  known  in  happier  days  and  under 
more  favorable  circumstances.  He  had  been  Jones' 
friend  when  he  had  been  in  the  zenith  of  his  ca- 
reer, and  he  remained  his  friend  in  this  nadir  of 
his  misfortunes.  The  part  that  he  played  in  the 
transaction  can  be  best  understood  by  his  own 
statement,  confirmed  by  'two  letters  written  by 
Jones.  The  first  letter  is  addressed  to  Patiomkine. 
It  had  been  written  before  the  visit  of  de  Segur: 

"  ST.  PETERSBURG,  April  13,  1789. 

"  MY  LORD  :  Having  had  the  advantage  to  serve 
under  your  orders  and  in  your  sight,  I  remember, 
with  particular  satisfaction,  the  kind  promises  and 
testimonies  of  your  friendship  with  which  you  have 
honoured  me.  As  I  served  all  my  life  for  honour, 
I  had  no  other  motive  for  accepting  the  flattering 
invitation  of  her  Imperial  Majesty  than  a  laudable 
ambition  to  distinguish  myself  in  the  service  of  a 
sovereign  so  magnanimous  and  illustrious ;  for  I 
never  yet  have  bent  the  knee  to  self-interest,  nor 
drawn  my  sword  for  hire.  .  .  . 

"  A  bad  woman  has  accused  me  of  violating  her 
daughter !  If  she  had  told  the  truth  I  should  have 
had  candour  enough  to  own  it,  and  would  trust  my 
honour,  which  is  a  thousand  times  dearer  to  me  than 
my  life,  to  the  mercy  of  the  empress.  I  declare, 
with  an  assurance  becoming  a  military  character, 


3Q4  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

that  I  am  innocent.  Till,  that  unhappy  moment  I 
have  enjoyed  the  public  esteem,  and  the  affection  of 
all  who  knew  me.  Shall  it  be  said  that  in  Russia  a 
wretched  woman,  who  eloped  from  her  husband  and 
family  in  the  country,  stole  azi'av  her  daughter,  lives 
here  in  a  house  of  bad  fame,  and  leads  a  debauched 
and  adulterous  life,  has  found  credit  enough  on  a 
simple  complaint,  unsupported  by  any  proof,  to 
affect  the  honour  of  a  general  officer  of  reputation, 
who  has  merited  and  received  the  decorations  of 
America,  of  France,  and  of  this  empire  ? 

"  If  I  had  been  favoured  with  the  least  intima- 
tion of  a  complaint  of  that  nature  having  found  its 
way  "to  the  sovereign,  I  know  too  well  what  belongs 
to  delicacy  to  have  presented  myself  in  the  presence 
of  the  empress  before  my  justification. 

"  My  servant  was  kept  prisoner  by  the  officers  of 
police  for  several  hours,  two  days  successively,  and 
threatened  with  the, knout. 

"  After  the  examination  of  my  people  before  the 
police,  I  sent  for  and  employed  Monsieur  Crimpin 
as  my  advocate.  As  the  mother  had  addressed  her- 
self to  him  before  to  plead  her  cause,  she  naturally 
spoke  to  him  without  reserve,  and  he  learned  from 
her  a  number  of  important  facts,  among  others,  that 
she  was  counselled  and  supported  by  a  distinguished 
man  of  the  court. 

"  By  the  certificate  of  the  father,  attested  by  the 
pastor  of  the  colony,  the  daughter  is  several  years 
older  than  is  expressed  in  the  complaint.  And  the 
complaint  contains  various  other  points  equally  false 
and  easy  to  be  refuted.  For  instance,  there  is  a  con- 
versation I  am  said  to  have  held  with  the  daughter 


APPEAL   TO   PATIOMKINE. 


395 


in  the  Russian  language,  of  which  no  person  ever 
heard  me  pronounce  two  words  together;  it  is 
unknown  to  me. 

"  I  thought  that  in  every  country  a  man  accused 
had  a  right  to  employ  advocates,  and  to  avail  him- 
self of  his  friends  for  his  justification.  Judge,  my 
prince,  of  my  astonishment  and  distress  of  mind, 
when  I  yesterday  was  informed  that  the  day  before 
the  governor  of  the  city  had  sent  for  my  advocate, 
and  forbidden  him,  at  his  peril,  or  any  other  person, 
to  meddle  with  my  cause! 

"  I  am  innocent  before  God,  and  my  conscience 
knows  no  reproach.  The  complaint  brought 
against  me  is  an  infamous  lie,  and  there  is  no  cir- 
cumstance that  gives  it  even  an  air  of  probability. 

"  I  address  myself  to  you  with  confidence,  my 
prince,  and  am  assured  that  the  friendship  you  have 
so  kindly  promised  me  will  be  immediately  exerted 
in  my  favour ;  and  that  you  will  not  suffer  the  illus- 
trious sovereign  of  this  great  empire  to  be  misled 
by  the  false  insinuations  and  secret  cabals  of  my 
hidden  enemies.  Your  mind  will  find  more  true 
pleasure  in  pleading  the  cause  of  an  innocent  man 
whom  you  honour  with  your  friendship  than  can 
result  from  other  victories  equally  glorious  with 
that  of  Oczakow,  which  will  always  rank  among  the 
most  brilliant  of  military  achievements.  If  your 
highness  will  condescend  to  question  Monsieur 
Crimpin  (for  he  dare  not  now  even  speak  to  me),  he 
can  tell  you  many  circumstances  which  will  eluci- 
date my  innocence.  .1  am,  with  profound  respect, 
my  lord,  your  highness's  devoted  and  most  obedient 
servant,"  etc. 


396  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

This  letter  was  accompanied  by  certificates 
which  fully  established  the  character  of  the  wretched 
woman  by  whose  agency  his  ruin  had  been  sought. 
The  letter  is  dignified  and  touching.  It  is  the  pas- 
sionate protest  of  an  innocent  man  against  an  ac- 
cusation concerning  that  which  he  had  ever  held 
dearer  than  life — his  honor.  It  carries  conviction 
with  it.  Incidentally  it  throws  much  light  upon  the 
Russian  legal  methods  of  that  day.  Never  does 
Jones  appear  in  a  better  light.  But  it  was  sent  to  an 
utterly  unresponsive  man.  Honor,  justice,  inno- 
cence, were  idle  words  to  Patiomkine.  No  reply 
was  made  to  the  note,  and  Jones  abandoned  him- 
self to  despair.  The  narrative  of  de  Segur  is  taken 
from  his  memoirs,  and,  excepting  in  some  minor 
details,  is  substantially  correct : 

"  The  American  rear  admiral  was  favourably 
welcomed  at  court ;  often  invited  to  dinner  by  the 
empress,  and  received  with  distinction  into  the  best 
society  in  the  city;  on  a  sudden  Catherine  com- 
manded him  to  appear  no  more  in  her  presence. 

"  He  was  informed  that  he  was  accused  of  an 
infamous  crime :  of  assaulting  a  young  girl  of  four- 
teen, of  grossly  violating  her;  and  that  probably, 
after  some  preliminary  information,  he  would  be 
tried  by  the  courts  of  admiralty,  in  which  there  were 
many  English  officers,  who  were  strongly  preju- 
diced against  him. 

"  As  soon  as  this  order  was  known  every  one 
abandoned  the  unhappy  American ;  no  one  spoke 
to  him,  people  avoided  saluting  him,  and  every 
door  was  shut  against  him.  All  those  by  whom 


DE   SEGUR'S   FRIENDSHIP.  397 

but  yesterday  he  had  been  eagerly  welcomed  now 
fled  from  him  as  if  he  had  been  infected  with  a 
plague ;  besides,  no  advocate  would  take  charge  of 
his  cause,  and  no  public  man  would  consent  to  listen 
to  him ;  at  last  even  his  servants  would  not  con- 
tinue in  his  service ;  and  Paul  Jones,  whose  exploits 
every  one  had  so  recently  been  ready  to  proclaim, 
and  whose  friendship  had  been  sought  after,  found 
himself  alone  in  the  midst  of  an  immense  popula- 
tion ;  Petersburg,  a  great  capital,  became  to  him  a 
desert. 

"  I  went  to  see  him ;  he  was  moved  even  to  tears 
by  my  visit.  '  I  was  unwilling,'  he  said  to  me,  shak- 
ing me  by  the  hand,  '  to  knock  at  your  door  and 
to  expose  myself  to  a  fresh  affront,  which  would 
have  been  more  cutting  than  all  the  rest.  I  have 
braved  death  a  thousand  times — now  I  wish  for  it.' 
His  appearance,  his  arms  being  laid  upon  the  table, 
made  me  suspect  some  desperate  intention. . 

"  '  Resume,'  I  said  to  him,  '  your  composure  and 
your  courage.  Do  you  not  know  that  human  life, 
like  the  sea,  has  its  storms,  and  that  fortune  is  even 
more  capricious  than  the  winds  ?  If,  as  I  hope,  you 
are  innocent,  brave  this  sudden  tempest ;  if,  unhap- 
pily, you  are  guilty,  confess  it  to  me  with  unreserved 
frankness,  and  I  will  do  everything  I  can  to  snatch 
you,  by  a  sudden  flight,  from  the  danger  which 
threatens  you.' 

"  '  I  swear  to  you  upon  my  honour,'  said  he, 
'  that  I  am  innocent,  and  a  victim  of  the  most  in- 
famous calumny.  This  is  the  truth.  Some  days 
since  a  young  girl  came  to  me  in  the  morning,  to 
ask  me  if  I  could  give  her  some  linen  or  lace  to 


398  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

mend.  She  then  indulged  in  some  rather  earnest 
and  indecent  allurements.  Astonished  at  so  much 
boldness  in  one  of  such  few  years,  I  felt  compassion 
for  her;  I  advised  her  not  to  enter  upon  so  vile  a 
career,  gave  her  some  money,  and  dismissed  her; 
but  she  was  determined  to  remain. 

"  '  Impatient  at  this  resistance,  I  took  her  by  the 
hand  and  led  her  to  the  door;  but,  at  the  instant 
when  the  door  was  opened,  the  little  profligate  tore 
her  sleeves  and  her  neck-kerchief,  raised  great  cries, 
complained  that  I  had  assaulted  her,  and  threw  her- 
self into  the  arms  of  an  old  woman,  whom  she  called 
her  mother,  and  who  certainly  \vas  not  brought 
there  by  chance.  The  mother  and  the  daughter 
raised  the  house  with  their  cries,  went  out,  and  de- 
nounced me ;  and  now  you  know  all.' 

'  Very  well/  said  I,  '  but  can  not  you  learn  the 
names  of  those  adventurers  ?  '  '  The  porter  knows 
them,'  he  replied.  '  Here  are  their  names  written 
down,  but  I  do  not  know  wrhere  they  live.  I  was 
desirous  of  immediately  presenting  a  memorial 
about  this  ridiculous  affair,  first  to  the  minister  and 
then  to  the  empress ;  but  I  have  been  interdicted 
from  access  to  both  of  them.'  '  Give  me  the  paper,' 
I  said  ;  '  resume  your  accustomed  firmness ;  be  com- 
forted ;  let  me  undertake  it ;  in  a  short  time  we  shall 
meet  again.' 

"  As  soon  as  I  returned  home  I  directed  some 
sharp  and  intelligent  agents,  who  were  devoted  to 
me,  to  get  information  respecting  these  suspected 
females,  and  to  find  out  what  was  their  mode  of 
life.  I  was  not  long  in  learning  that  the  old 
woman  was  in  the  habit  of  carrying  on  a  vile 


DE   SEGUK'S   ADVICE. 

traffic   in   young   girls,    whom   she   passed   off   as 
her  daughters. 

"  When  I  was  furnished  with  all  the  documents 
and  attestations  for  which  I  had  occasion,  I  hastened 
to  show  them  to  Paul  Jones.  '  You  have  nothing 
more  to  fear/  said  I ;  '  the  wretches  are  unmasked. 
It  is  only  necessary  to  open  the  eyes  of  the  empress, 
and  let  her  see  how  unworthily  she  has  been  de- 
ceived ;  but  this  is  not  so  very  easy ;  truth  encoun- 
ters a  multitude  of  people  at  the  doors  of  a  palace, 
who  are  very  clever  in  arresting  its  progress ;  and 
sealed  letters  are,  of  all  others,  those  which  are  in- 
tercepted with  the  greatest  art  and  care.  Never- 
theless, I  know  that  the  empress,  who  is  not  igno- 
rant of  this,  has  directed  under  very  heavy  penalties 
that  no  one  shall  detain  on  the  way  any  letters  which 
are  addressed  to  her  personally,  and  which  may  be 
sent  to  her  by  post ;  therefore,  here  is  a  very  long 
letter  which  I  have  written  to  her  in  your  name ; 
nothing  of  the  detail  is  omitted,  although  it  contains 
some  rough  expressions.  I  am  sorry  for  the  em- 
press ;  but  since  she  heard  and  gave  credit  to  a 
calumny,  it  is  but  right  that  she  should  read  the 
justification  with  patience.  Copy  this  letter,  sign 
it,  and  I  will  take  charge  of  it ;  I  will  send  some 
one  to  put  it  in  the  post  at  the  nearest  town.  Take 
courage ;  believe  me,  your  triumph  is  not  doubt- 
ful.' " 

The  contents  of  the  letter  which  Jones  was  ad- 
vised to  copy  and  send  are  not  now  ascertainable, 
but  the  following  letter  was  written  to  the  empress ; 
and,  while  it  is  so  evidently  in  Jones'  own  peculiar 


400  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

and  characteristic  style  as  to  admit  of  no  doubt  as 
to  its  authorship,  he  probably  embodied  in  it  the 
suggestions  of  de  Segur  and  substituted  it  for  the 
copy  proposed : 

"  ST.  PETERSBURG,  May  17,  ijSg. 

"  MADAM  :  I  have  never  served  but  for  honour ; 
I  have  never  sought  but  glory ;  and  I  believed  I  was 
in  the  way  of  obtaining  both  when  I  accepted  the 
offers  made  me  on  the  part  of  your  Majesty,  of  en- 
tering into  your  service.  ...  I  sacrificed  my  dear- 
est interests  to  accept  an  invitation  so  flattering,  and 
I  would  have  reached  you  instantly  if  the  United 
States  had  not  entrusted  me  with  a  special  com- 
mission to  Denmark.  Of  this  I  acquitted  myself 
faithfully  and  promptly.  .  .  .  The  distinguished  re- 
ception which  your  Majesty  deigned  to  grant  me, 
the  kindness  with  which  you  loaded  me,  indemni- 
fied me  for  the  dangers  to  which  I  had  exposed  my- 
self for  your  service,  and  inspired  me  with  the  most 
ardent  desire  to  encounter  more.  ...  I  besought 
your  Majesty  never  to  condemn  me  unheard.  You 
condescended  to  give  me  that  promise,  and  I  set 
out  with  a  mind  as  tranquil  as  my  heart  was  satis- 
fied. .  .  . 

"  At  the  close  of  the  campaign  I  received  orders 
to  return  to  court,  as  your  Majesty  intended  to  em- 
ploy me  in  the  North  Seas,  and  M.  le  Comte  de 
Besborodko  acquainted  me  that  a  command  of 
greater  importance  than  that  of  the  Black  Sea  .  .  . 
was  intended  for  me.  Such  was  my  situation,  when, 
upon  the  mere  accusation  of  a  crime,  the  very  idea 
of  which  wounds  my  delicacy,  I  found  myself  driven 
from  court,  deprived  of  the  good  opinion  of  your 


A   SOLDIER'S   WORD. 


401 


Majesty,  and  forced  to  employ  the  time  which  I 
wish  to  devote  to  the  defence  of  your  empire  in 
cleansing  from  myself  the  stains  with  which  cal- 
umny has  covered  me. 

"  Condescend  to  believe,  madam,  that  if  I  had 
received  the  slightest  hint  that  a  complaint  of  such 
a  nature  had  been  made  against  me,  and  still  more, 
that  it  had  come  to  your  Majesty's  knowledge,  I 
know  too  well  what  is  owing  to  delicacy  to  have 
ventured  before  you  till  I  was  completely  excul- 
pated. 

"  Understanding  neither  the  laws,  the  language, 
nor  the  forms  of  justice  in  this  country,  I  needed  an 
advocate,  and  obtained  one ;  but,  whether  from  ter- 
ror or  intimidation,  he  stopped  short  all  at  once,  and 
durst  not  undertake  my  defence,  though  convinced 
of  the  justice  of  my  cause.  But  truth  may  always 
venture  to  show  itself  alone  and  unsupported  at  the 
foot  of  the  throne  of  your  Majesty.  I  have  not  hesi- 
tated to  labour  unaided  for  my  own  vindication ;  I 
have  collected  proofs ;  and  if  such  details  might  ap- 
pear under  the  eyes  of  your  Majesty  I  would  pre- 
sent them ;  but  if  your  Majesty  will  deign  to  order 
some  person  to  examine  them,  it  will  be  seen  by 
the  report  which  will  be  made  that  my  crime  is  a 
fiction,  invented  by  the  cupidity  of  a  wretched 
woman,  whose  avarice  has  been  countenanced,  per- 
haps incited,  by  the  malice  of  my  numerous  enemies. 
Her  husband  has  himself  certified  and  attested  to 
her  infamous  conduct.  His  signature  is  in  my 
hands,  and  the  pastor,  Braun,  of  the  district,  has  as- 
sured me  that  if  the  College  of  Justice  will  give  him 
an  order  to  this  effect  he  will  obtain  an  attestation 


402  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

from  the  country  people  that  the  mother  of  the  girl 
referred  to  is  known  among  them  as  a  wretch  ab- 
solutely unworthy  of  belief. 

"  Take  a  soldier's  word,  madam ;  believe  an  offi- 
cer whom  two  great  nations  esteem,  and  who  has 
been  honoured  with  flattering  marks  of  their  appro- 
bation. ...  I  am  innocent ;  and  if  I  were  guilty  I 
would  not  hesitate  to  make  a  candid  avowal  of  my 
fault,  and  to  commit  my  honour,  which  is  a  thou- 
sand times  dearer  to  me  than  my  life,  to  the  hands 
of  your  Majesty. 

"  If  you  deign,  madam,  to  give  heed  to  this 
declaration,  proceeding  from  a  heart  the  most  frank 
and  loyal,  I  venture  from,  your  justice  to  expect  that 
my  zeal  will  not  remain  longer  in  shameful  and 
humiliating  inaction.  It  has  been  useful  to  your 
Majesty,  and  may  again  be  so,  especially  in  the 
Mediterranean,  where,  with  insignificant  means,  I 
will  undertake  to  execute  most  important  opera- 
tions, the  plans  for  which  I  have  meditated  long  and 
deeply.  But  if  circumstances,  of  which  I  am  igno- 
rant, do  not  admit  the  possibility  of  my  being  em- 
ployed during  the  campaign,  I  hope  your  Majesty 
will  give  me  permission  to  return  to  France  or 
America,  granting,  as  the  sole  reward  of  the  services 
I  have  had  the  happiness  to  render,  the  hope  of  re- 
newing them  at  some  future  day.  .  .  ." 

Catherine,  to  her  credit  be  it  stated,  took  the 
"  soldier's  word,"  examined  the  convincing  proofs, 
and,  being  satisfied  of  his  innocence,  publicly  re- 
ceived him  at  court  again  and  thus  openly  vindi- 
cated him.  New  projects  immediately  began  to  take 


VINDICATED. 


403 


shape  in  his  fertile  brain.  No  bodily  weakness  could 
apparently  impair  his  mental  activity.  With  a  half 
dozen  East  Indiamen  armed  for  warlike  purposes  he 
offered  to  cut  off  the  food  traffic  between  Egypt  and 
Constantinople ;  an  idea  as  old  as  the  days  of  the 
Caesars,  when  upon  the  arrival  of  the  corn  ships  from 
Alexandria  depended  the  control  of  the  Roman 
plebeians ;  but  the  idea  was  as  good  now  as  it  was 
then,  and  if  he  had  been  intrusted  with  the  meager 
force  he  requested  he  would  have  compelled  the 
Turks  to  detach  ships  from  the  Black  Sea  fleet,  and 
thus  relieve  the  pressure  on  the  Crimea. 

Count  Besboroclko  was  pleased  with  the  project, 
and  promised  to  submit  it  to  the  empress,  propos- 
ing, af  the  same  time,  if  this  plan  fell  through,  to 
give  him  another  command  in  the  Black  Sea,  with 
an  adequate  fleet,  by  which  he  might  force  his  way 
into  the  Mediterranean.  About  the  middle  of  June, 
on  his  applying  to  this  minister  again,  he  was  prom- 
ised an  answer  in  two  days  as  to  the  pleasure  of  the 
empress  concerning  him.  Besborodko  stated  that 
Catherine  would  either  give  him  a  command  or 
grant  the  leave  of  absence  w^hich  he  had  asked  in  his 
letter  of  the  i/th.  The  minister  had  a  court  mem- 
ory, however,  and  not  two  days,  but  many,  passed 
without  the  information.  On  the  5th  of  July  Jones 
wrote  again  to  the  minister  in  the  usual  direct  way 
he  employed  when  he  was  irritated,  and  asked  for 
an  immediate  declaration  of  intentions  regarding 
him.  It  was  a  high-handed  way  to  address  the  Rus- 
sian court,  but  it  brought  an  immediate  reply.  On 
the  8th  of  July  he  was  officially  informed  that  his  re- 
quest for  a  leave  of  absence  was  granted  for  two 


404  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

years,  with  permission  to  go  outside  the  limits  of 
the  empire.  His  salary  was  to  be  continued  during 
that  time. 

On  the  1 8th  of  July  he  had  a  farewell  audience 
with  the  empress,  who  treated  him  very  nicely  on 
this  occasion.  As  he  kissed  her  hand  in  good-by 
she  wished  him  bon  voyage,  which  was  politic  but 
unsubstantial.  He  did  not  leave  St.  Petersburg  im- 
mediately, and  it  was  not  until  the  last  of  August 
that  he  took  his  final  leave  of  the  Russian  capital. 
During  this  interval  he  was  detained  partly  by  the 
difficulty  in  collecting  his  arrears  in  pay  and  al- 
lowances, and  partly  for  the  reason  that  he  un- 
dertook, in  spite  of  the  rebuffs  he  had  received,  again 
to  lay  before  Besborodko  and  others  a  project  for 
a  war  against  the  Barbary  States,  which,  of  course, 
came  to  nothing.  He  left  Russia  a  bitterly  disap- 
pointed man. 

The  disinterested  friendship  of  de  Segur  had 
not  been  exhausted  by  his  previous  actions,  and  he 
gave  additional  proofs  of  his  affection  by  supplying 
Jones  with  letters  of  introduction  to  the  representa- 
tives of  the  French  Government  at  the  different 
courts  of  Europe  which  he  proposed  to  visit,  and 
the  two  following  statements  addressed  to  the 
French  Minister  of  Foreign  Affairs : 

"  ST.  PETERSBURG,  July  21,  1789. 
"  The  enemies  of  the  Vice-Admiral  *  Paul  Jones 
having  caused  to  be  circulated  reports  entirely  desti- 
tute of  foundation  concerning  the  journey  which 
this  general  officer  is  about  to  undertake,  I  would 

*  This  is  a  mistake,  he  was  never  a  vice  admiral. 


LEAVES   RUSSIA. 


405 


wish  the  inclosed  article,  the  authenticity  of  which 
I  guarantee,  should  be  inserted  in  the  Gazette  de 
France,  and  in  the  other  public  papers  which  are 
submitted  to  the  inspection  of  your  department. 
This  article  will  undeceive  those  who  have  believed 
the  calumny,  and  will  prove  to  the  friends  and  to 
the  compatriots  of  the  vice  admiral  that  he  has  sus- 
tained the  reputation  acquired  by  his  bravery  and 
his  talents  during  the  last  war ;  that  the  empress  de- 
sires to  retain  him  in  her  service;  and  that  if  he  ab- 
sents himself  at  this  moment  it  is  with  his  own  free 
will,  and  for  particular  reasons,  which  can  not  leave 
any  stain  on  his  honour. 

"  The  glorious  marks  of  the  satisfaction  and 
bounty  of  the  king  toward  M.  Paul  Jones,  his  at- 
tachment to  France,  which  he  has  served  so  usefully 
in  the  common  cause,  his  rights  as  a  subject,  and  as 
an  admiral  of  the  United  States,  the  protection  of 
the  ministers  of  the  king,  and  my  personal  friend- 
ship for  this  distinguished  officer,  with  whom  I 
made  a  campaign  in  America,  are  so  many  reasons 
which  appear  to  me  to  justify  the  interest  which  I 
took  in  all  that  concerned  him  during  his  stay  in 
Russia. 

"Article  to  be  inserted  in  the  Public  Prints,  and  particularly  in 
the  Gazette  de  France. 

"Sr.  PETERSBURG,  July  .?/,  1789. 

11  The  Vice-Admiral  Paul  Jones,  being  at  the 

point  of  returning  to  France,  where  private  affairs 

require  his  presence,  had  the  honour  to  take  leave 

of  the  empress,  the  7th  *  of  this  month,  and  to  be 

*  Old  style. 


406  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

admitted  to  kiss  the  hand-  of  her  Imperial  Majesty, 
who  confided  to  him  the  command  of  her  vessels  of 
war  stationed  on  the  Liman  during.the  campaign  of 
1788.  As  a  mark  of  favour  for  his  conduct  during 
this  campaign  the  empress  has  decorated  him  with 
the  insignia  of  the  order  of  St.  Anne ;  and  her  Im- 
perial Majesty,  satisfied  with  his  services,  only 
grants  him  permission  to  absent  himself  for  a  lim- 
ited time,  and  still  preserves  for  him  his  emoluments 
and  his  rank." 

Jones  did  not  lack  other  friends  either,  for 
M.  Genet,  Secretary  of  the  French  Legation  at  St. 
Petersburg,  and  subsequently  Minister  from  France 
to  the  United  States — his  extraordinary  conduct 
while  he  enjoyed  that  office  will  be  remembered — 
whose  father  had  been  an  old  friend  of  the  com- 
modore's, gave  him  a  most  cordial  and  gratifying 
letter  of  introduction  to  the  celebrated  Madame 
Campan,  in  which  he  specifically  states  the  un- 
founded nature  of  the  charges  which  had  been 
made,  and,  describing  the  circumstances  in  which 
Jones  left  Russia,  authorized  her  to  correct  any 
rumors  to  his  disadvantage  which  might  be  put  in 
circulation  at  Versailles.  He  also  consented  to  act 
as  Jones'  financial  representative,  and  transmitted  to 
him  from  time  to  time  such  amounts  on  his'  pay  as 
he  could  wrest  from  the  Russian  Government. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

LAST    YEARS   AND    DEATH. 

THE  next  year  of  his  life  the  commodore  passed 
in  travel.  His  destination  when  he  left  Russia  was 
Copenhagen ;  perhaps  he  had  in  mind  the  possibility 
of  resuming  the  negotiations  with  the  Danish  Gov- 
ernment on  the  old  claim,  and  it  is  possible  that  his 
deferred  pension  may  have  had  something  to  do 
with  this  intention.  He  had  no  especial  place  to 
go ;  one  city  was  as  good  as  another  to  him.  In  his 
busy  wandering  life  he  had  never  made  a  home  for 
himself,  and,  while  his  mind  and  heart  turned  with 
ever  more  intensity  of  affection  to  the  United  States, 
yet  he  loved  America  in  an  abstract  rather  than  a 
concrete  way.  The  principles  for  which  the  United 
States  stood,  and  upon  which  they  were  constituted 
and  organized,  appealed  to  him,  but  those  personal 
ties  which  he  had  formed  in  his  brief  sojourn  be- 
fore the  Revolution  were  weakened  by  absence  or 
had  been  sundered  by  death.  There  was  no  em- 
ployment for  him  there,  for  his  country  had  abso- 
lutely no  navy.  Besides,  he  needed  rest.  He  who 
had  fought  throughout  a  long  life  for  liberty  and 
freedom,  for  honor  and  fame,  was  doomed  to  strug- 
gle for  that  last  desire  for  the  few  remaining  years 
left  him. 

407 


4o8  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

He  traveled  leisurely,  from  St.  Petersburg  to 
Warsaw,  where  he  was  kindly  received  at  the  court 
of  Poland,  and  where  he  busied  himself  preparing 
journals  of  his  American  service  and  of  the  Liman 
campaign,  copies  of  which  he  sent  to  Catherine. 
There,  too,  he  met  the  great  Pole,  Kosciusko,  and 
the  acquaintance  between  the  veteran  sailor  and  the 
old  soldier  of  the  Revolution  speedily  ripened  into 
intimacy.  'Sweden  had  declared  war  against  Rus- 
sia. Kosciusko,  who  was  the  inveterate  enemy  of 
this  gigantic  empire,  which  finally  wrote  finis  Polonicc 
across  the  story  of  his  country,  would  have  been 
most  happy  if  he  could  have  seen  the  fleets  of 
Sweden  led  by  so  redoubtable  a  warrior  as  Jones. 
But  of  course  such  a  proposition  was  not,  and  could 
not  be,  entertained  by  Jones.* 

*  Nassau  was  then  in  command  of  the  Russian  fleet  in 
the  Baltic,  and  an  encounter  with  him — had  a  Swedish  com- 
mand been  tendered  Jones,  and  if  he  could  have  accepted  it — 
would  have  been  interesting.  There  would  have  been  a  final 
demonstration,  which  probably  would  have  convinced  even 
Nassau,  as  to  the  merits  of  the  rival  commanders  in  the 
Liman.  Nassau,  by  accepting  the  advice  of  the  English  and 
other  foreign  officers  associated  with  him,  succeeded  with  a 
superior  force  in  beating  the  Swedes,  whereupon  honors 
were  showered  upon  him — more  land,  more  peasants,  more 
roubles,  more  rank.  His  favor  was  higher  than  ever;  but 
he  was  magnificently  beaten  a  short  time  after  by  a  very  in- 
ferior Swedish  fleet,  and  his  defeat  was  as  decisive  as  it  was 
disgraceful.  He  lost  fifty-three  vessels,  fourteen  hundred 
guns,  and  six  thousand  men.  He  had  refused  to  take  any- 
body's advice  on  this  occasion  and  had  conducted  the  battle 
himself.  His  cowardice  and  incapacity  therefore  were  en- 
tirely apparent.  He  tried  to  attribute  this  defeat,  which 
compelled  Catherine  to  make  peace  upon  terms  not  advan- 
tageous to  her,  to  the  cowardice  of  the  Russians  whom  he 


KOSCIUSKO'S   DESIRE. 


409 


On  leaving  Warsaw  for  Vienna,  it  is  suggested 
that  he  made  the  detour  necessitated  by  visiting  that 
point,  rather  than  proceeding  directly  to  Copen- 
hagen via  Berlin,  at  the  instigation  of  Catherine, 
who  desired  to  remove  him  from  the  vicinity  of  the 
Swedes.  She  might  not  use  him  herself,  but  she 
could  not  contemplate  with  any  degree  of  equanim- 
ity the  possibility  of  his  serving  against  her.  There 
is  not  the  slightest  evidence  that  he  ever  thought  of 
entering  the  service  of  Sweden.  He  repels  the  idea 
with  indignation,  and  the  sole  foundation  for  it  arose 
from  Kosciusko's  ardent  desire.  Jones'  conduct  in 
the  affair  is  beyond  criticism ;  indeed,  he  was  too  ill 
at  that  time,  although  he  did  not  realize  it,  to  be 
employed  by  any  one.  In  his  papers  the  following 
declaration  is  found.  It  is  undated,  and  the  docu- 
ments to  which  it  was  attached  give  no  clew  as  to 
when  it  was  written,  or  whether  it  was  ever  pub- 
lished, but  from  its  contents  it  must  have  been  pre- 
pared while  he  was  on  this  leave  of  absence  from 
Russia.  It  is  a  notable  little  document,  for  it  re- 
peats his  assertion  of  American  citizenship,  ex- 
presses his  intention  of  never  warring  against  the 
United  States  or  France,  -and  clearly  defines  the 
tenure  of  his  connection  with  the  Russians : 

commanded.  The  Russians  were  not  cowards.  He  fell  from 
favor,  left  the  court,  and  passed  the  remainder  of  his  life 
on  his  estate  in  Poland  in  the  society  of  his  homely  but  de- 
voted wife.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  she  made  things  interest- 
ing for  him,  but  it  is  hardly  likely.  He  died  in  obscurity 
and  poverty  in  1809,  unregretted  and  forgotten. 


410  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

"  NOTICE. 

"  The  Rear-Admiral  Paul  Jones,  desirous  of 
making  known  unequivocally  his  manner  of  think- 
ing in  relation  to  his  military  connection  with  Rus- 
sia, declares : 

"  i  st.  That  he  has  at  all  times  expressed  to  her 
Imperial  Majesty  of  Russia  his  vow  to  preserve  the 
condition  of  an  American  citizen  and  officer. 

"  2d.  That,  having  been  honoured  by  his  most 
Christian  Majesty  with  a  gold  sword,  he  has  made  a 
like  vow  never  to  draw  it  on  any  occasion  \vhere  war 
might  be  waged  against  his  Majesty's  interest. 

"  3d.  That  circumstances  which  the  rear  ad- 
miral could  not  foresee  when  he  wrote  on  the  last 
occasion  make  him  feel  a  presentiment  that,  in  spite 
of  his  attachment  and  gratitude  to  her  Imperial 
Majesty,  and  notwithstanding  the  advantageous 
propositions  which  may  be  made  to  him,  he  will 
probably  renounce  the  service  of  that  power,  even 
before  the  expiration  of  the  leave  of  absence  which 
he  now  enjoys." 

To  return  to  his  trip..  After  staying  some  time  in 
Vienna,  where  he  seems  to  have  been  received  with 
favor  in  high  social  circles,  though  the  illness  of  the 
emperor  prevented  his  being  presented,  he  w-ent  to 
Amsterdam  ria  Hamburg.  Here  he  remained  for 
some  time,  engaged,  as  usual,  in  correspondence. 
He  still  seems  to  have  cherished  the  sailor's  dream 
of  buying  a  farm  and  passing  his  remaining  years 
thereon,  for  we  find  among  his  letters  an  inquiry 
addressed  to  Mr.  Charles  Thompson,  the  Secretary 


RKTURNS   TO    PARIS. 


411 


of  Congress,  about  an  estate  near  Lancaster,  Penn- 
sylvania, which  he  thought  of  purchasing  from 
funds  invested  in  the  United  States.  But  in  view 
of  his  anomalous  connection  with  Russia  he  thought 
it  well  to  remain  in  Europe  until  it  had  either 
ceased  or  been  renewed.  This  was  the  time,  being 
in  need  of  funds,  that  he  wrote  to  his  old  friend 
Krudner  to  endeavor  to  secure  payment  of  the 
Danish  pension. 

Krudner  readily  undertook  Jones'  commission, 
and  the  Danish  Government  promised  to  pay  the 
pension  at  Copenhagen  to  any  one  whom  Jones 
would  authorize  to  receive  it.  They  never  paid  it. 
Krudner  always  retained  his  friendship  for  Jones, 
and  one  of  his  letters  closes  with  these  words : 

"  At  all  events,  I  flatter  myself,  as  a  good  Rus- 
sian, that  your  arm  is  still  reserved  for  us." 

At  the  end  of  April,  1790,  he  crossed  over  to 
London  on  some  financial  business,  which  he  set- 
tled to  his  satisfaction.  He  remained  but  a  brief 
time  in  England — his  visits  there  were  always  brief 
and  devoid  of  publicity ;  he  seems  to  have  felt  keen- 
ly the  hatred  with  which  the  English  regarded  him, 
and  under  such  circumstances  his  action  was  wise. 

Toward  the  close  of  May  he  returned  to  Paris, 
which  was  perhaps  the  place  where  his  happiest 
hours  had  been  spent,  and  at  Paris  he  continued  to 
reside  until  the  last  scene  in  his  eventful  history. 
It  was  no  longer  the  gay  and  pleasure-seeking  re- 
sort of  his  earlier  and  happier  years.  The  grim 
shadow  of  the  Revolution,  as  yet  no  larger  than  a 
man's  hand,  was  already  lowering  on  the  horizon. 


412  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

A  year  before  his  arrival  the  States-General  had 
been  summoned  for  the  first  time  in  a  hundred  and 
seventy-five  years.  On  the  I4th  of  July,  eight 
months  before  his  coming,  the  drums  of  the  sections 
rolled  the  knell  of  the  Bastile,  and  a  little  later  still 
the  old  feudal  constitution,  which  had  endured  the 
vicissitudes  of  a  thousand  years  of  change,  was 
abrogated,  and  the  rule  of  the  people  began.  Louis 
XVI,  poor  puppet  of  fortune,  "  imponderous  rag  of 
circumstance,"  was  driven  hither  and  thither  by  the 
furious  blasts  of  liberated  passion  charged  with  cen- 
turies of  animosity,  for  a  few  aimless,  pitiful  years, 
and  then — the  guillotine  ! 

For  two  years  Jones  lived  in  quiet  retirement. 
He  made  but  one  other  public  appearance,  in  July, 
1790,  in  connection  with  the  first  anniversary  of  the 
taking  of  the  Bastile.  Paris,  inspirited  with  the  first 
breath  of  freedom,  drawn  from  the  first  labor  pains 
of  the  Revolution,  determined  to  celebrate  in  fitting 
style  this  grand  anniversary.  Different  groups  of 
foreigners  residing  in  France  sent  delegates  to 
appear  before  the  National  Assembly  and  ask  per- 
mission to  take  part  in  the  national  fete.  Paul  Jones 
headed  the  Americans,  and  made  an  address  to  the 
Assembly.  Thenceforward  he  did  nothing  of  a 
public  character. 

His  traveling  had  brought  him  neither  surcease 
of  care  nor  restoration  to  health.  His  hardy  con- 
stitution, shattered  by  constant  exposure  in  all 
weathers  and  every  climate,  and  worn  out  by  the 
chafings  of  his  ardent  and  impatient  temperament 
throughout  the  course  of  a  career  checkered  by  pe- 
riods of  alternate  exaltation  and  depression,  and 


AN    ARISTOCRATIC    REPUBLICAN. 


413 


filled  with  hopes  and  disappointments  in  equal 
measure,  was  rapidly  yielding  to  the  pains  and  ail- 
ments which  were  ushering  in  the  fatal  moment 
which  should  put  an  end  to  all  his  dreams  and 
aspirations.  His  time,  however,  was  not  passed  un- 
happily, and  returns  from  investments  provided  him 
with  enough  for  his  simple  needs.  During  the  stir- 
ring hours  of  the  beginning  of  the  Revolution  he 
busied  himself  in  writing  his  journals,  arranging  the 
great  mass  of  papers  he  had  accumulated,  and  in 
his  never-failing  correspondence.  Sometimes  he 
attended  the  Sorbonne,  and  held  discussion  with 
philosophers.  Madame  de  Telison  was  with  him. 

He  was  drawn  in  two  ways  by  the  condition  of 
France.  His  sympathies  were  ever  with  humanity 
struggling  for  freedom ;  but  he  had  received  so 
many  marks  of  favor  from  the  French  king,  to 
whom  he  owed  his  great  opportunities  for  achieve- 
ment and  advancement,  that  he  could  scarcely  view 
with  equanimity  the  dangers  and  harassments  of 
that  unhappy  monarch.  He  was  a  republican 
through  and  through  in  principle,  but  by  instinct 
and  association,  if  not  by  birth,  he  was  one  of  the 
proudest  and  most  thoroughgoing  of  aristocrats — 
as  Washington  was  £n  aristocrat.  Like  many  other 
people,  his  theory  of  life  and  government  was  dif- 
ferent from  his  practice.  Besides,  the  liberty  which 
the  French  were  striving  to  establish  was  already 
perilously  verging  on  that  unbounded  license  into 
which  it  soon  degenerated,  and  that  his  disciplined 
soul  abhorred.  His  associates  in  France  were  main- 
ly among  the  Girondists,  with  whom  he  was  more 
nearly  affiliated  than  with  other  political  parties. 


414  COMMODORE   PAUL'  JONES. 

He  did  not  realize  that  he  was  so  broken  in 
health,  for  he  still  clung  to  his  tenuous  connection 
with  Russia,  sending  repeated  letters  to  Catherine 
and  Patiomkine,  with  demands,  requests,  and  sug- 
gestions of  various  plans  for  service.  Patiomkine, 
as  usual,  took  no  notice,  but  the  last  letter  to  Cather- 
ine having  been  forwarded  through  Baron  Grimm, 
she  directed  him,  rather  curtly  by  the  way,  to  in- 
form Jones  that  jf  she  had  service  for  him  she  would 
let  him  know.  After  that  Jones  seems  to  have  dis- 
continued his  letters  to  Russia.  He  found,  how- 
ever, two  new  outlets  for  his  restless  zeal.  Early  in 
1792,  chancing  to  meet  an  Algerian  corsair,  who  had 
captured  many  Americans  now  held  for  ransom  in 
Algiers,  he  learned  much  of  the  unfortunate  con- 
dition of  those  unhappy  sailors,  to  whose  fate  their 
country  was  apparently  oblivious.  The  corsair  in- 
formed him  that  if  these  captives  were  not  ransomed 
promptly  they  would  be  sold  into  slavery.  Jones 
wrote  immediately  to  Jefferson,  then  Secretary  of 
State,  and  with  all  his  power  urged  that  something 
be  done  for  them,  either  by  sending  a  force  to  com- 
pel restitution  or  by  means  of  ransom.  The  letter, 
as  we  shall  see,  was  not  without  result. 

The  second  object  of  interest  was  a  claim  which 
he  entertained  against  the  French  Government  for 
salary  due  him  while  in  command  of  the  Bon 
Homme  Richard  and  the  squadron.  The  United 
States  had  paid  him  his  salary  as  an  officer  during 
that  period,  but  he  felt  that  since  his  services  had 
been  asked  by  France,  and  the  squadron  had  been 
at  the  charge  of  the  French  Government,  a  further 
amount  \vas  due  him  from  the  French,  and  he  wrote 


CLAIM    AGAINST    FRANCE. 


415 


to  de  Bertram!,  Minister  of  Marine,  demanding  the 
balance  due.  The  claim  was  the  subject  of  acrid 
correspondence,  and  the  matter  was  pending  when 
he  died.*  From  the  letters  written  during  the  last 
years  of  his  life  I  quote  portions  of  three — the  first 
two  to  his  sister,  Mrs.  Taylor,  and  the  last  one  to 
Lafayette : 

"  AMSTERDAM,  March  26,  fjgo. 

"  I  wrote  you,  my  dear  friend,  from  Paris,  by 
Mr.  Kennedy,  who  delivered  me  the  kind  letter  you 
wrote  me  by  him.  Circumstances  obliged  me  to 
return  soon  afterward  to  America,  and  on  my  arrival 
at  New  York  Mr.  Thomson  delivered  me  a  letter 
that  had  been  intrusted  to  his  care  by  Mrs.  London. 
It  would  be  superfluous  to  mention  the  great  satis- 
faction I  received  in  hearing  from  two  persons  I  so 
much  love  and  esteem,  and  whose  worthy  conduct 
as  wives  and  mothers  is  so  respectable  in  my  eyes. 
Since  my  return  to  Europe  a  train  of  circumstances 
and  changes  of  residence  have  combined  to  keep  me 
silent.  This  has  given  me  more  pain  than  I  can  ex- 
press ;  for  I  have  a  tender  regard  for  you  both,  and 
nothing  can  be  indifferent  to  me  that  regards  your 
happiness  and  the  welfare  of  your  children.  I  wish 
for  a  particular  detail  of  their  age,  respective  talents, 
characters,  and  education.  I  do  not  desire  this  in- 
formation merely  from  curiosity.  It  wrould  afford 
me  real  satisfaction  to  be  useful  to  their  establish- 
ment in  life.  We  must  study  the  genius  and  inclina- 
tion of  the  boys,  and  try  to  fit  them,  by  a  suitable 

*  A   portion  was   subsequently  paid   to  his  heirs  by  the 
French  Government. 


416  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

education,  for  the  pursuits,  we  may  be  able  to  adopt 
for  their  advantage.  When  their  education  shall  be 
advanced  to  a  proper  stage,  at  the  school  of  Dum- 
fries for  instance,  it  must  then  be  determined 
whether  it  may  be  most  economical  and  advantage- 
ous for  them  to  go  to  Edinburgh  or  France  to  finish 
their  studies.  All  this  is  supposing  them  to  have 
great  natural  genius  and  goodness  of  disposition; 
for  without  these  they  can  never  become  eminent. 
For  the  females,  they  require  an  education  suited  to 
the  delicacy  of  character  that  is  becoming  in  their 
sex.  I  wish  I  had  a  fortune  to  offer  to  each  of  them  ; 
but  though  this  is  not  the  case,  I  may  yet  be  useful 
to  them.  And  I  desire  particularly  to  be  useful  to 
the  two  young  women,  who  have  a  double  claim  to 
my  regard,  as  they  have  lost  their  father.  Present 
my  kind  compliments  to  Mrs.  London,  her  hus- 
band, to  Mr.  Taylor,  and  your  two  families,  and  de- 
pend on  my  affectionate  attachment.  .  .  ." 

"  PARIS,  December  27,  ijgo. 

"  I  duly  received,  my  dear  Mrs.  Taylor,  your 
letter  of  the  i6th  August,  but  ever  since  that  time  I 
have  been  unable  to  answer  it,  not  having  been 
capable  to  go  out  of  my  chamber,  and  having  been 
for  the  most  part  obliged  to  keep  my  bed.  I  have 
now  no  doubt  but  that  I  am  in  a  fair  way  to  perfect 
recovery,  though  it  will  require  time  and  patience. 

"  I  shall  not  conceal  from  you  that  your  family 
discord  aggravates  infinitely  all  my  pains.  My  grief 
is  inexpressible  that  two  sisters,  whose  happiness 
is  so  interesting  to  me,  do  not  live  together  in  that 
mutual  tenderness  and  affection  which  would  do  so 


IN   A   NOBLE    LIGHT. 


417 


much  honour  to  themselves  and  to  the  memory  of 
their  worthy  relations.  Permit  me  to  recommend 
to  your  serious  study  and  application  Pope's  Univer- 
sal Prayer.  You  will  find  more  morality  in  that 
little  piece  than  in  many  volumes  that  have  been 
written  by  great  divines : 

"  '  Teach  me  to  feel  another's  woe, 

To  hide  the  fault  I  see  ; 
That  mercy  I  to  others  show, 
Such  mercy  show  to  we.' 

"  This  is  not  the  language  of  a  weak,  supersti- 
tious mind,  but  the  spontaneous  offspring  of  true 
religion,  springing  from  a  heart  sincerely  inspired 
by  charity,  and  deeply  impressed  with  a  sense  of 
the  calamities  and  frailties  of  human  nature.  If  the 
sphere  in  which  Providence  has  placed  us  as  mem- 
bers of  society  requires  the  exercise  of  brotherly 
kindness  and  charity  toward  our  neighbour  in  gen- 
eral, how  much  more  is  this  our  duty  with  respect 
to  individuals  with  whom  we  are  connected  by  the 
near  and  tender  ties  of  nature  as  well  as  moral  obli- 
gation. Every  lesser  virtue  may  pass  away,  but 
charity  comes  from  Heaven,  and  is  immortal. 
Though  I  wish  to  be  the  instrument  of  making 
family  peace,  which  I  flatter  myself  would  tend  to 
promote  the  happiness  of  you  all,  yet  I  by  no  means 
desire  you  to  do  violence  to  your  own  feelings  by 
taking  any  step  that  is  contrary  to  your  own  judg- 
ment and  inclination.  Your  reconciliation  must 
come  free  from  your  heart,  otherwise  it  will  not 
last,  and  therefore  it  will  be  better  not  to  attempt  it. 

Should  a  reconciliation  take  place,  I  recommend 
28 


4i 8  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

it  of  all  things,  that  you  never  mention  past  griev- 
ances, nor  show,  by  zvord,  look,  or  action,  that  you 
have  not  forgot  them." 

"  PARIS,  December  7,  /7<?/. 

"  DEAR  GENERAL  :  My  ill  health  for  some  time 
past  has  prevented  me  from  the  pleasure  of  paying 
you  my  personal  respects,  but  I  hope  shortly  to 
indulge  myself  with  that  satisfaction. 

"  I  hope  you  approve  the  quality  of  the  fur  lin- 
ings I  brought  from  Russia  for  the  King  and  your- 
self. I  flatter  myself  that  his  Majesty  will  accept 
from  your  hand  that  little  mark  of  the  sincere  attach- 
ment I  feel  for  his  person ;  and  be  assured  that  I 
shall  be  always  ready  to  draw  the  sword  with  which 
he  honoured  me  for  the  service  of  the  virtuous  and 
illustrious  '  PROTECTOR  OF  THE  RIGHTS  OF  HUMAN 
NATURE.' 

"  When  my  health  shall  be  established,  M. 
Simolin  will  do  me  the  honour  to  present  me  to  his 
Majesty  as  a  Russian  admiral.  Afterward  it  will  be 
my  duty,  as  an  American  officer,  to  wait  on  his 
Majesty  with  the  letter  which  I  am  directed  to  pre- 
sent to  him  from  the  United  States." 

Jones  appears  in  a  very  pleasant  light  in  all  of 
these  letters,  and  I  am  glad  to  read  the  evidences  of 
gentleness  and  of  affection  and  kindly  feeling  which 
they  present.  In  March,  1792,  his  disease,  which 
had  developed  into  a  lingering  form  of  dropsy,  be- 
came complicated  with  a  disorder  of  the  liver.  He 
grew  much  worse,  lost  his  appetite,  became  very 
jaundiced,  and  was  confined  to  his  bedroom  for  two 
months.  Under  treatment  he  grew  temporarily  bet- 


THE   APPROACHING   END. 


419 


ter,  until  the  beginning  of  July,  when  he  became  sud- 
denly worse  again  and  the  dropsy  began  to  manifest 
itself  once  more.  The  disease  attacked  his  chest. 
His  legs  became  much  swollen,  and  the  enlargement 
extended  upward  so  that  he  could  not  button  his 
waistcoat  and  had  great  difficulty  in  breathing. 

He  was  not,  as  has  been  asserted,  in  poverty  and 
want,  deserted  by  his  friends.  He  lived  in  a  com- 
fortable apartment  in  the  second  story  of  No.  42 
Tournon  Street,  and  enjoyed  the  services  of  one  of 
the  best  physicians  in  France,  who  was,  in  fact, 
physician  to  the  queen.  Gouverneur  Morris,  the 
American  Minister,  was  a  warm  friend  of  his,  and 
paid  him  many  visits  during  his  dying  hours.  He 
had  no  lack  of  other  friends  either,  for  he  was  at- 
tended by  two  gentlemen,  ex-American  army  offi- 
cers, Colonels  Swan  and  Blackden,  and  by  a  French 
officer,  M.  Beaupoil.  They  all  seem  to  have  been 
fond  of  the  little  commodore,  and  to  have  visited 
him  constantly.  They  did  everything  possible  to 
lighten  his  dying  hours.  His  symptoms  became  so 
alarming  about  the  middle  of  July  that  Colonel 
Blackden  took  upon  himself  the  duty  of  advising 
him  to  make  his  will  and  settle  his  affairs.  He  put 
off  this  action  until  the  i8th  of  the  month.  On  the 
afternoon  of  that  day  Morris  drew  up  a  schedule  of 
his  property  from  Jones'  own  dictation,  and  his 
friends  having  sent  for  a  notary,  he  made  his  will, 
which  was  drawn  in  English  by  Morris,  and  tran- 
scribed in  French  by  the  notary.  The  will  was  wit- 
nessed by  Swan,  Blackden,  and  Beaupoil.*  In  this 

*  See  Appendix  No.  V. 


420  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

document — the  last  of  all  .his  writings — dictated  in 
those  solemn  hours  when  he  looked  Death  in  the 
face  in  final  glance,  the  real  value  of  earthly  honors 
and  titles  became  apparent  to  him  ;  he  describes  him- 
self with  touching  simplicity,  not  as  Commodore, 
Chevalier,  or  Admiral — titles  he  had  loved — but  in 
greater  words  as  "  John  Paid  Jones,  a  citizen  of  the 
United  States." 

At  eight  o'clock  in  the  evening  his  friends  bade 
him  good  by,  and  perhaps  "  Good  night "  were  the 
last  words  any  one  heard  him  speak.  They  left  him 
seated  in  his  armchair  in  his  parlor  in  the  second 
story.  A  short  time  after  their  departure  the  physi- 
cian arrived  to  pay  his  regular  evening  visit.  The 
armchair  was  empty,  and  the  door  of  the  chamber 
adjoining  the  parlor  was  open.  He  walked  over  to- 
ward it  and  stopped  in  the  entrance,  and  this  is  what 
he  saw :  the  figure  of  the  great  commodore  lying 
prone  upon  the  bed,  his  feet  touching  the  floor  and 
his  hands  outstretched  before  him.  There  was  no 
sound  in  the  still  room.  The  physician  stepped 
softly  to  the  bedside,  turned  him  over,  and  laid  his 
hand  upon  his  heart.  He  felt  no  responsive  throb. 
The  little  captain  of  the  Bon  Homme  Richard  was 
dead,  worn  out,  fretted  away,  broken  down,  at  the 
age  of  forty-five !  "  The  hand  of  a  conqueror  whom 
no  human  power  can  resist  had  been  laid  upon  his 
shoulder,  and  for  the  first  time  in  his  life  the  face  of 
Paul  Jones  was  turned  away  from  the  enemy."  * 
Fitting,  indeed,  would  it  have  been  if  from  the  deck 
of  the  war  ship  the  soul  of  the  sea  king  had  taken 

*  From  my  book,  American  Fights  and  Fighters. 


LAST   SCENE   OF   ALL. 


421 


its  flight ;  but,  after  all,  he  was  at  rest  at  last — "  in 
peace  after  so  many  storms,  in  honor  after  so  much 
obloquy." 

The  peculiar  position  in  which  he  was  found,  as 
I  have  thought  upon  it,  has  suggested  to  me  the 
possibility  that,  when  he  felt  the  last  crisis  coming 
upon  him,  he  may  have  attempted  to  sink  down  by 
his  bedside,  that  the  call  of  his  Maker  might  find 
him — as  years  after  it  found  David  Livingstone  in 
the  heart  of  dark  Africa — on  his  knees  in  prayer. 
And  then  sometimes  I  think — and  this  is  perhaps 
more  likely — that  he  may  have  risen  to  his  feet  to 
face  death,  as  was  his  wont,  and  have  fallen  forward 
when  it  came.  No  one  can  tell.  A  century  has  fled 
away  since  they  found  him  there,  but  the  sorrow  of 
it  all  is  still  present  with  me  as  I  write.  An  exile 
from  his  native  land,  far  from  the  country  of  his 
adoption,  in  the  prime  of  life,  he  dies.  There  was 
not  a  woman  with  him  to  whisper  words  of  comfort, 
to  give  him  that  last  touch  of  tenderness  that  comes 
from  a  woman's  hand.  Alone  he  had  lived — alone 
he  died.  Oh,  the  pity  of  it !  The  man  of  the  world, 
become  the  citizen  of  the  hew  republic,  had  found 
another  country — let  us  hope  a  heavenly  one.  He 
did  much  and  he  suffered  much,  and  for  such  we 
may  be  sure  there  is  much  charity,  much  forgive- 
ness. 

By  the  terms  of  his  will  all  his  property, 
amounting  to  some  thirty  thousand  dollars,  was  left 
to  his  two  surviving  sisters  and  their  children — the 
same  to  whom  he  had  sent  those  sweet  words  coun- 
seling forbearance  and  consideration.  The  fact  that 
he  had  shown  but  little  of  the  one  and  had  re- 


422  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

ceived  but  little  of  the  other  in  his  life  only  accen- 
tuates his  sense  of  their  need.  One  other  honor  his 
country  had  in  store  for  him,  but  it  arrived  too 
late.  He  had  been  long  buried  when  a  commis- 
sion appointing  him  to  negotiate  the  release  of 
the  prisoners  in  Algiers  arrived  in  France.  It 
was  an  honor  he  would  have  appreciated,  and 
in  carrying  it  out  he  would  have  found  a  con- 
genial task. 

The  National  Assembly  honored  his  memory  by 
sending  a  deputation,  headed  by  its  president,  to 
represent  them  at  his  funeral,  which  took  place  on 
the  second  day  after  his  death,  at  eight  o'clock  in 
the  evening.  All  his  friends,  including  the  Ameri- 
cans, were  there  as  well.  A  French  Protestant 
clergyman  named  Marron  conducted  the  services 
and  delivered  a  eulogy,  but  one  sentence  of  which 
is  worthy  of  quotation :  "  The  fame  of  the  brave 
outlives  him ;  his  portion  is  immortality." 

It  has  been  determined  recently  that  the  inter- 
ment was  made  in  the  little  cemetery  reserved  for 
those  who  died  in  the  Protestant  faith,  situated  at  the 
corner  of  the  Rue  de  la  Grange  aux  Belles  and  Rue 
des  Ecluses  Saint  Martin — then  in  the  suburbs,  now 
in  the  heart  of  the  city.  The  cemetery  was  officially 
closed  on  January  i,  1/93.  A  canal  was  afterward 
cut  through  it  and  buildings  erected  upon  the  other, 
lots.  The  exact  location  of  Jones'  grave  is  un- 
known, and,  as  there  were  at  least  ten  thousand 
people  buried  there,  it  would  probably  be  a  matter 
of  great  difficulty  to  find  it,  should  the  effort  be 
made ;  and  the  expense  would  be  considerable.  The 
body,  clad  in  an  American  uniform,  was  incased  in  a 


FORGOTTEN. 


423 


leaden  coffin,  with  sword,*  etc.,  and  unless  all 
the  elements  have  been  dissipated  by  the  action  of 
the  water  it  might  be  possible  to  identify  his  re- 
mains. Certainly  there  is  no  question,  if  satisfactory 
settlement  could  be  had,  that  his  remains  should  be 
brought  to  the  United  States,  with  all  naval  honors, 
here  to  be  suitably  interred  and  his  grave  marked  by 
an  appropriate  monument.  So  far  as  I  know,  there 
has  not  even  been  so  much  as  a  memorial  tablet 
erected  to  his  memory  in  any  part  of  the  great  coun- 
try toward  whose  independence  he  contributed  so 
much.  A  serious  and  ungrateful  omission  this,  and, 
whether  his  remains  be  found  or  not,  it  is  to  be 
hoped  that  it  may  be  soon  rectified,  f 

*  This  sword  was,  of  course,  not  that  presented  to  him  by 
the  King  of  France.  After  Jones'  death  his  heirs  gave  this 
famous  sword  to  Robert  Morris.  Morris,  in  turn,  presented 
it  to  Commodore  John  Barry,  at  that  time  senior  officer  of 
the  United  States  Navy.  By  him  it  was  bequeathed  to  his 
friend  Commodore  Richard  Dale,  once  of  the  Bon  Homme 
Richard,  and  it  now  remains  in  the  possession  of  his  great- 
grandson,  Mr.  Richard  Dale,  of  Philadelphia. 

f  Why  a  monument  has  not  been  erected  to  Jones  I  can 
not  understand,  it  would  be  a  noteworthy  object  for  indi- 
vidual and  national  effort,  and  in  no  better  way  could  we 
commit  ourselves  to  the  fame  and  achievements  of  the  great 
captain,  and  forever  stamp  with  disapproval  those  calumnies 
with  which  envy  seeks  to  sully  the  name  of  our  first  great 
sailor. 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

PERSONAL      APPEARANCE CHARACTERISTICS — WAS 

HE   A    PIRATE? FAREWELL. 

PAUL  JONES  was  a  small,  slender  man,  some- 
what under  the  middle  stature,  or  about  five  feet 
five  inches  in  height.  As  is  frequently  the  custom 
with  seamen,  who  pass  much  of  their  lives  between 
decks,  his  shoulders  were  slightly  rounded,  and  at 
first  glance  he  seemed  smaller  than  he  was.  In 
physique  he  was  active  and  graceful,  well  propor- 
tioned and  strong.  Many  portraits  of  him  exist, 
some  of  them  gross  caricatures,  representing  him  as 
the  proverbial  pirate  of  early  days  clad  in  fantastic 
costurhe,  his  belt  bristling  with  pistols  and  knives, 
and  depicting  him  in  the  act  of  slaying  some  terrified 
and  helpless  sailor;  but  it  is  from  such  representa- 
tions as  the  painting  by  Peale,*  the  bust  by  Hou- 
don,  the  naval  medal,  and  the  miniature  by  the 
Countess  de  Lavendahl,  that  we  get  a  correct  idea 
of  his  appearance.  His  features  were  regular;  his 
nose  was  straight,  prominent,  and  slightly  enlarged 
at  the  tip ;  his  lips  were  elegantly  curved.  His  head 
was  well  proportioned,  and  set  firmly  upon  his 
shoulders ;  in  spite  of  his  stoop  he  held  it  erect, 

*  The  frontispiece  of  this  volume. 
424 


PERSONAL   APPEARANCE.  423 

which  gave  him  an  intent,  eager  expression.  His 
large  black  eyes  were  set  deep  in  their  sockets 
under  heavy,  arched  eyebrows ;  in  moments  of  ac- 
tion they  sparkled  with  fire  and  passion.  His  hair 
was  black  and  plentiful,  and  the  darkness  of  his 
complexion  had  been  intensified  by  years  of  ex- 
posure to  wind  and  weather.  His  hands  and  feet 
were  small  and  of  good  shape.  He  was  always  par- 
ticular in  his  dress,  which  was  of  material  as  rich 
and  in  cut  as  elegant  as  his  means  permitted.  With- 
out being  handsome,  therefore,  he  was  a  man  of  dis- 
tinctly striking  and  notable  appearance  in  any  so- 
ciety. 

His  habitual  expression  was  thoughtful  and 
meditative.  His  face  was  the  face  of  a  student 
rather  than  that  of  a  fighter.  As  it  looks  out  at  us 
from  the  canvas  of  the  past  in  Peale's  portrait,  there 
is  a  little  touch  of  wonder  and  surprise  in  the  soft, 
reflective 'eyes.  The  mystery  of  life  is  there.  We 
feel  that  the  man  is  speculating  upon  us,  measuring 
us,  wondering  who  and  what  we  are.  There  is  a 
gentle  gravity  about  the  face  which  is  most  attrac- 
tive. In  the  profile  on  the  medal  and  in  the  Hou- 
don  bust  other  qualities  predominate.  You  catch  a 
glimpse  of  the  proud,  imperious,  dashing  sailor  in 
the  uplifted  poise  of  the  head,  the  tense,  straight 
line  of  the  lips,  and  the  firm,  resolute  chin ;  and 
there  is  a  suggestion  of  humor,  grim  enough,  in  the 
whole  face.  The  Countess  de  Lavendahl  apparently 
depicts  him  in  the  role  of  a  lover,  fashionably  attired 
and  arrayed  for  conquest.  In  each  of  these  repre- 
sentations we  have  the  broad,  splendid  brow  which 
typifies  the  mind  that  was  in  him.  It  is  probable 


426  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

that  these  different  portraits  were  each  good  like- 
nesses, and  that  each  artist,  in  accordance  with  his 
insight,  wrought  into  his  presentment  what  he  saw 
in  the  man. 

A  man  of  abundant  self-confidence,  he  was  not 
easily  embarrassed,  and  we  find  him  at  home  as 
well  in  the  refined  and  cultivated  colonial  society  of 
North  Carolina  as  upon  the  decks  of  a  ship  manned 
by  the  rudest  and  roughest  of  men.  He  bears  him- 
self with  easy  dignity  at  the  courts  of  Russia  and 
France,  and  is  not  discomfited  in  the  presence  of 
king,  queen,  or  empress.  His  manners  were  easy 
and  polite.  There  was  a  touch  of  the  directness  of 
the  sailor  and  the  fighter  in  his  address,  I  doubt 
not,  but  his  behavior  was  certainly  that  of  a  gen- 
tleman— quiet,  dignified,  somewhat  haughty,  but 
pleasing.  This  is  established  by  the  testimony  of 
those  who  knew  him,  including  the  Englishwoman 
mentioned  above;  by  traditions  which  have  come 
down  to  us ;  by  the  fact  that  he  was  admitted  into 
the  most  exclusive  circles  in  various  courts  of  Eu- 
rope, and  that  he  retained  the  place  which  had  been 
accorded  him  through  years  of  acquaintanceship. 
He  has  been  called  low,  brutal,  common,  and  vul- 
gar, but  such  accusations  are  incompatible  with  the 
position  he  occupied.  He  might  have  been  received, 
of  course,  but  he  never  would  have  been  not  merely 
tolerated,  but  admired  and  sought  after,  if  the 
charges  were  correct. 

In  saying  this,  I  do  not  wish  to  be  understood 
as  being  oblivious  of  his  faults.  As  occasion  has 
demanded,  I  have  not  hesitated  to  call  attention  to 
them.  He  was  irritable  and  impatient,  captious 


INTELLECTUAL   ACQUIREMENTS.  427 

and  quarrelsome,  at  times  variable  and  inconsistent. 
We  find  him  addressing  a  superior  at  one  time  in 
terms  that  are  almost  too  respectful,  and  in  his  next 
communication  writing  with  a  blunt  frankness  of 
a  superior  to  an  inferior.  This  frequently  caused 
him  trouble,  inasmuch  as  he  usually  had  to  deal 
with  men  who  were  his  superiors  in  birth  and  sta- 
tion, though  not  to  be  compared  with  him  in  talents 
and  education.  The  limitations  of  his  humble  ori- 
gin account  for  this  variant  attitude  to  the  world's 
so-called  great. 

His  great  fault  was  his  vanity.  It  was  a  weak- 
ness, like  some  of  his  other  qualities,  colossal.  It 
manifested  itself  in  every  way  that  vanity  can 
manifest  itself.  No  defense  can  be  uttered.  We 
recognize  the  fact  and  note  it  with  pain,  but  in 
the  presence  of  his  great  qualities  pass  it  by,  after 
calling  attention  to  the  strange  fact  that  other  and 
more  famous  sailors,  including  the  greatest  man 
who  ever  fought  a  ship  or  squadron,  Lord  Nelson, 
were  under  the  spell  of  the  same  weakness — and 
other  greater  weaknesses.  No  character  in  history 
is  without  weakness.  There  was  but  One  who 
manifested  no  weakness,  not  even  on  a  cross. 

His  mind  was  a  w'ell-furnished  one.  From  boy- 
hood he  had  cultivated  the  studious  habit  with 
which  he  was  endowed  in  large  degree,  with  the 
assiduity  and  perseverance  of  a  Scotsman.  He  was 
thoroughness  itself ;  whatever  he  attempted  he  did  so 
well  that  he  usually  left  nothing  further  to  be  de- 
sired. His  brain  was  alert  and  active.  He  was 
quick-witted,  and  not  devoid  of  humor,  although 
there  is  always  a  touch  of  sternness  in  his  persiflage. 


428  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

His  letters  fall  into  two  classes.  When  he  wrote 
under  pressure  of  strong  emotion  or  excitement,  he 
expressed  his  personality  with  his  pen  as  adequately 
as  he  did  in  his  actions ;  his  remarks  were  short, 
sharp,  direct,  logical,  and  in  good  taste ;  his  style 
was  vigorous  and  perspicuous.  On  the  other  hand, 
he  frequently  descended,  especially  when  address- 
ing women,  into  verbosity,  and  verbosity  of  that 
most  intolerable  species  known  as  fine  writing — 
witness  his  letter  to  Lady  Selkirk.  As  a  phrase 
maker  many  of  his  sentences  ring  with  his  spirit. 
"  I  do  not  wish  to  have  command  of  any  ship  that 
does  not  sail  fast,  for  I  intend  to  go  in  harm's  way  "  ; 
"I  have  not  yet  begun  to  fight";  "I  have  ever 
looked  out  for  the  honor  of  the  American  flag  " ; 
"  I  can  never  renounce  the  glorious  title  of  a  citizen 
of  the  United  States,"  are  some  of  his  sayings  which 
have  passed  into  history,  and  might  appropriately 
serve  for  inscriptions  on  the  four  sides  of  his  monu- 
ment, when  a  too  tardy  people  pay  him  the  honor  of 
erecting  one.* 

He  spoke  French  well  and  wrote  it  better.  He 
found  no  difficulty  in  making  himself  understood  in 
France,  and  that  language  was  used  entirely  in  his 
Russian  campaign.  In  an  age  when  everybody 
scribbled  verse  he  wrote  poetry  which  is  creditable 
to  him.  It  has  been  remarked  that  it  was  much 
better  verse  than  Nelson  wrote.  Like  many  other 
naval  officers  of  that  day,  he  played  the  flute 
and  had  a  taste  for  music.  He  was  undoubtedly  a 

*  Some  of  his  phrases  in  his  Russian  letters  remind  me 
of  Shakespeare's  Henry  V. 


RELIGIOUS   OPINIONS. 


429 


member  of  the  Presbyterian  Church  by  baptism  in 
infancy,  and  although,  so  far  as  is  known,  he  was 
not  actively  in  communion  with  any  religious  or- 
ganization during  his  life,  he  was  in  no  sense  an 
irreligious  man.  "  They  that  go  down  to  the  sea  in 
ships  that  do  business  in  great  waters,"  who  see 
"  the  works  of  the  Lord,  and  his  wonders  in 
the  deep,"  are  rarely  ultimately  indifferent  to  re- 
ligion. They  are  superficially  careless,  perhaps,  but 
they  are  neither  skeptics  nor  atheists.*  Nothing 
could  be  sweeter  and  more  gentle  than  his  letters  to 
his  sisters  with  their  unequivocal  recognition  of  the 
Power  above  which  shapes  our  ends. 

In  a  day  when  seamen — and  no  less  the  naval 
officer  than  the  merchantman — considered  a  capa- 
city for  picturesque  and  plentiful  profanity  a  mark 
of  professional  aptitude,  he  was  distinguished  by  re- 
fraining from  oaths  and  curses.  Mark  the  words : 
"  Do  not  swear,  Mr.  Stacy — in  another  moment  we 
may  all  be  in  eternity — but  let  us  do  our  duty."  Ut- 
tered in  the  heat  of  action,  and  in  a  critical  moment, 
the  sentence  is  as  rare  as  it  is  beautiful,  and  it  some- 
how reminds  me  of  the  dying  words  of  Nelson  in 
the  cockpit  of  the  Victory.  He  was  clean-mouthed 
and  clean-hearted.  I  do  not  wish  to  say  that  he  was 
immaculate,  a  saint,  or  anything  of  that  sort,  but 
there  is  no  man  of  similar  upbringing,  who  lived  in 
his  day,  and  under  such  circumstances,  whose  life 
appears  to  be  cleaner.  There  is  a  total  absence  of 
sensuality  in  his  career.  In  over  thirteen  hundred 

*  I  have  known  hundreds  of  sailors  more  or  less  inti- 
mately, and  I  have  never  met  one  who  might  be  included  in 
either  of  those  melancholy  classes. 


43O  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

letters  which  have  been  examined,  there  is  not  a 
coarse  or  indelicate  allusion ;  no  double  entendre 
ever  sullies  his  pages,  and  the  name  of  no  woman  is 
mentioned  save  in  terms  of  respect.  It  is  probable 
that  his  amour  with  Madame  de  Telison  passed  the 
bounds  of  Platonic  friendship  or  romantic  admira- 
tion, and  it  is  possible  that  they  did  have  a  child  ; 
but  even  this  is  by  no  means  certain,  and  the  con- 
clusion may  do  him  an  injustice. 

When  one  remembers  that  from  a  tender  age 
he  was  deprived  of  those  gentle  restraints  imposed 
by  pious  and  loving  family  ties,  his  character  is  re- 
markable. I  have  observed  in  much  experience 
with  men  that  when  the  check  put  upon  humanity 
by  the  Church,  by  association  with  good  women, 
and  by  keeping  in  touch  with  law-abiding  society 
is  removed,  and  men  are  assembled  far  from  these 
things  in  camps  or  ships,  where  the  principal  re- 
quirement is  a  stern  obedience  to  law,  and  the  at- 
mosphere strictly  masculine,  they  are  apt  to  think, 
say,  and  do  things  to  which  they  would  never  de- 
scend under  ordinary  circumstances.  Jones  had 
been  a  sailor — an  .apprentice  boy  at  that — at  twelve 
years  of  age ;  for  sixteen  years  thereafter  he  had 
never  been  off  blue  water  for  more  than  a  few 
months.  Five  years  of  that  time  he  had  been  on 
a  slaver,  beginning  as  third  mate  at  sixteen  and 
quitting  as  chief  mate  at  twenty-one,  and  of  all  the 
degrading,  brutal  influences  to  which  humanity 
could  be  subjected  there  was  nothing  that  equaled 
the  horrors  of  a  ship  in  the  slave  trade.  The  tough 
moral  fiber  of  the  Scotsman  stood  him  in  good  stead 
here,  for  the  thing  which  with  a  boy's  indifference 


LOVE   OF    LIBERTY. 


431 


he  could  countenance,  he  could  not  endure  as  a 
man. 

And  this  brings  us  to  another  of  his  qualities, 
which  awakens  our  interest — his  intense  love  of  lib- 
erty. Probably  it  began  with  the  slave  trade ;  at  any 
rate,  it  was  always  and  everywhere  present  with 
him.  Practically  his  first  military  effort  was  an  at- 
tempt to  set  free  American  prisoners,  and  his  last 
commission  from  the  United  States  was  the  ap- 
pointment to  effect  the  release  of  the  unfortunate 
Americans  held  by  the  Barbary  States.  Thus  he 
fought  not  merely  for  the  establishment  of  civil 
liberty  and  national  independence,  but  with  an  eye 
single  to  the  individual  prisoner,  and  his  spirit  was 
sufficiently  catholic  to  make  him  kindly  disposed 
even  when  the  prisoners  were  trophies  of  his 
prowess.  His  pleading  at  L'Orient,  when  he  was 
left  with  the  dishonored  draft,  mutinous  crew,  and 
over  one  hundred  prisoners,  was  as  much  for  those 
Englishmen  whom  the  fortune  of  war  had  thrown 
into  his  power  as  for  his  own  people. 

Like  most  men  of  fierce  passions  and  quick  tem- 
per, he  did  not  long  cherish  animosities.  He  was 
not  a  good  hater,  and  this  very  quality  sometimes 
led  him  into  mistaken  kindness.  He  was  a  humane 
man,  in  no  sense  the  cruel  and  bloodthirsty  warrior 
of  popular  imagination.  He  is  thankful,  for  in- 
stance, after  the  descent  on  Whitehaven,  that  there 
was  no  loss  of  life  on  either  side,  and  we  have  no 
reason  to  doubt  the  genuineness  of  his  outburst  of 
gratitude  when  peace  was  declared,  although  it  left 
him  without  occupation. 

He  had  a  good  head  for  business  also.     In  spite 


432  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

of  his  roving  life  he  succeeded  in  amassing  consid- 
erable property,  and  his  success  as  a  trader  before 
he  entered  the  naval  service  had  been  better  than 
the  average.  In  fact,  his  merchant  services  resulted 
in  an  unbrokn  line  of  testimonials  not  only  to  his 
capacity  but  to  his  probity  and  trustworthiness  as 
well.  As  a  negotiator  or  diplomatist  he  was  open, 
straightforward,  persistent,  and  unusually  success- 
ful. A  solid  foundation  of  good  qualities  must  have 
been  laid  by  his  homespun  mother  in  those  twelve 
years  in  which  she  watched  over  and  shaped  the 
future  character  of  the  boy. 

While  he  was  too  much  of  a  wanderer  ever  to 
form  those  deep  and  abiding  social  ties  which  are 
the  delight  of  old  age  and  reflection — though  to 
youth  matters  of  indifference — yet  his  various 
duties  brought  him  into  intimate  association  with 
great  men  all  over  the  world,  and  there  is  a  uni- 
versal testimony  from  them  as  to  his  worth.  They 
were  not  blind  to  his  faults,  but  they  saw  the  worthi- 
ness of  the  man  beneath  them.  Franklin,  the  keen 
philosopher  and  diplomat,  who  knew  him  best,  es- 
teemed him  most ;  but  Robert  Morris,  the  incor- 
ruptible financier;  Thomas  Jefferson,  the  great 
Democrat ;  Gouverneur  Morris,  the  accomplished 
man  of  the  world ;  John  Adams,  the  shrewd  states- 
man ;  and  Washington,  the  first  of  them  all,  es- 
teemed and  admired  him,  and  considered  them- 
selves honored  in  his  friendship.  Richard  Dale,  his 
great  subordinate,  who  had  been  with  him  in  times 
that  tried  men's  souls,  entertained  the  most  devoted 
feelings  of  attachment  toward  him,  and  Cooper, 
who  knew  Dale  personally,  tells  us  that  to  the  day 


HIS    FRIENDS. 


433 


of  his  death  he  never  lost  his  affectionate  regard  for 
his  old  captain.  The  terms  of  their  intimacy  when 
not  on  duty  permitted  Dale  to  address  Jones  by 
the  friendly  name  of  Paul,  and  Cooper  chronicles 
the  peculiar  tenderness  with  which  he  uttered  the 
word  in  his  old  age. 

Among  the  French  who  respected  and  admired 
him,  the  gallant  and  impetuous  Lafayette  is  pre- 
eminent. That  warm-hearted  representative  of  the 
haute  noblesse  of  France  sought  opportunities  for 
service  with  the  commodore,  and  never  failed  to  ex- 
press his  affection  for  him  in  the  most  unequivocal 
words.  Among  others  were  Rochambeau,  the  sol- 
dier; Malesherbes,  the  great  advocate,  defender  of 
his  king ;  the  Baron  de  Viomenil,  who  led  the  French 
assaulting  column  at  Yorktown ;  and  Admirals 
d'Orvilliers,  de  Vaudreuil,  and  d'Estaing.  Among 
other  foreign  friends  were  van  der  Capellen,  the 
Dutch  statesman  and  diplomat  and  friend  of  Amer- 
ica ;  of  Russians,  Krudner  and  Grimm ;  and  the  im- 
mortal Kosciusko,  of  Poland.  His  acquaintance 
with  these  men  was  no  mere  passing  contact,  but 
was  intimate  and  personal ;  and  his  relations  in  most 
instances  were  not  temporary  and  casual,  but  last- 
ing and  permanent.  Langhton,  the  English  au- 
thority in  naval  history,  in  his  famous  sketch  enti- 
tled "  Paul  Jones,  '  the  Pirate,'  "  *  says  that  Jones' 
moral  character  may  be  summed  up  in  one  word — 
detestable!  He  calls  him  a  renegade  and  a  calcu- 

*  Studies  in  Naval  History,  by  John  Knox  Laughton,  M.  A., 
Professor  of  Modern  History  at  King's  College,  London,  and 
Lecturer  on    Naval    History  at   the    Royal    Naval   College, 
Greenwich,  etc.,  1887. 
29 


434  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

lating  liar,  incapable  of  friendship  or  of  love,  and 
says  that,  "  Whenever  his  private  actions  can  be 
examined,  they  must  be  pronounced  to  be  discredit- 
able; and  as  to  many  others  that  appear  to  be  so, 
there  is  no  evidence  in  favor  except  his  own  unsub- 
stantial and  worthless  testimony."  It  is  not  an  in- 
dictment against  Jones  alone  that  Professor  Laugh- 
ton  so  lightly  writes,  but  against  the  great  men  who, 
with  infinitely  better  opportunities  for  observation 
than  any  of  his  biographers  have  enjoyed,  have  not 
been  slow  to  call  him  their  friend.  Is  it  to  be  con- 
ceived for  a  single  moment  that  Franklin,  Jefferson, 
Lafayette,  the  Morrises,  or  any  of  the  others,  would 
have  associated  with,  corresponded  with,  and  pub- 
licly praised  a  vulgar  blackguard?  Would  such  a 
man,  however  successful,  have  been  admitted  to  any 
society  whatsoever?  Or,  having  in  the  first  flush  of 
joy  at  the  news  of  his  tremendous  victory  been  so 
admitted,  could  such  a  man  have  retained  his  posi- 
tion for  thirteen  years — until  he  died,  in  fact  ?  Non- 
sense! He  looked  like  a  gentleman;  he  wrote  like 
a  gentleman;  whenever  his  words  have  been  re- 
corded we  find  he  spoke  like  a  gentleman,  and  he 
certainly  fought  like  one. 

Never  was  a  man  so  calumniated.  His  actions 
were  so  great  that  intense  interest  was  felt  in  his 
career  from  the  day  of  his  arrival  in  Europe,  and 
after  his  death  quantities  of  sketches  of  him  ap- 
peared, many  of  which  are  still  extant.  They  are 
of  the  chap-book  order — the  dime  novel  of  the  day 
— and  usually  contain  an  awe-inspiring  picture,  and 
relate  a  tale  in  which  smuggling,  gambling,  false- 
hood, theft,  rape,  murder,  and  everything  else  that 


WAS   HE   A   PIRATE? 


435 


is  vile,  are  included.  Laughton  seems  to  have  ar- 
rived at  his  estimation  of  Jones  by  accepting  these 
scandalous  tales  as  authentic,  and  building  his  biog- 
raphy of  material  culled  from  these  disgraceful  and 
discredited  sources.  No  man  can  conceal  his  real 
character  for  any  great  length  of  time,  especially 
a  man  in  official  station,  who  lives  in  the  white  light 
of  public  criticism.  If  Jones  were  the  creature  that 
Laughton  describes  him,  it  would  appear  some- 
where in  some  serious  page  of  his  own.  He  was  a 
most  voluminous  correspondent  —  Philip  II  was 
not  a  more  indefatigable  letter  writer  than  he — 
and  he  spoke  of  the  subjects  under  discussion 
with  a  sailor's  frankness.  Why  is  it  that  none  of 
these  things  are  evident?  He  was  foolish  some- 
times, but  never  base.  It  is  too  late  to  write  down 
in  a  few  careless  words  the  great  men  who  enter- 
tained so  high  an  opinion  of  the  commodore.  But 
Professor  Laughton  is  not  alone  in  his  opinions. 
Indeed,  his  conclusions  appear  to  represent  a  general 
English  sentiment.  So  great  a  novelist  as  the 
gentle  Thackeray  calls  Jones  a  traitor,  and  the  popu- 
lar opinion  even  in  this  day  does  not  seem  to  have 
changed.  In  the  current  number  of  the  London 
Academy  *  he  is  again  called  a  "  pirate."  Let  us 
settle  this  question  at  least. 

What  is  a  pirate?  Says  President  Woolsey: 
"  Piracy  is  robbery  on  the  sea,  or  by  descent  from 
the  sea  upon  the  coast,  committed  by  persons  not 
holding  a  commission  from,  or  at  the  time  pertain- 
ing to,  any  established  state.  It  is  the  act  (i)  of 

*  July  6,  1900. 


436  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

persons  forming  an  organization  for  the  purpose  of 
plunder,  or  with  malicious  intent ;  but  who,  inas- 
much as  such  a  body  is  not  constituted  for  political 
purposes,  can  not  be  said  to  be  a  body  politic;  (2) 
of  persons  who,  having  in  defiance  of  law  seized 
possession  of  a  chartered  vessel,  use  it  for  the  pur- 
pose of  robbery ;  (3)  of  persons  taking  a  commission 
from  two  belligerent  adversaries.  The  reason  for 
ranking  these  latter  among  pirates  is  that  the 
animus  fnrandi  is  shown  by  acting  under  two  re- 
pugnant authorities.  It  has  been  held  by  some  that 
a  vessel  which  takes  commissions  even  from  two 
allies  is  guilty  of  piracy,  but  others  regard  such  an 
act  only  as  illegal  and  irregular."  * 

Chancellor  Kent  calls  piracy  "  robbery,  forceful 
plunder,  or  murder  by  marauders  on  the  high  seas 
in  the  spirit  and  intent  of  universal  hostility"  The 
Century  Dictionary  defines  it  as  follows :  "  Specifi- 
cally in  the  law  of  nations,  the  crime  of  depredations 
or  willful  and  aggressive  destruction  of  life  and 
property,  committed  on  the  seas  by  persons  having 
no  commission  or  authority  from  any  established 
state.  As  commonly  used,  it  implies  something 
more  than  a  simple  theft  with  violence  at  sea,  and 
includes  something  of  the  idea  of  general  hostility 
to  law." 

By  any  of  these  definitions  can  Paul  Jones  be 
called  a  pirate?  It  will  be  readily  seen  that  the 
charge  hangs  upon  the  question  as  to  whether  Jones 
held  a  commission  from  an  established  state.  In 
fact,  the  determination  of  that  point  settles  the  mat- 

*  Woolsey,  International  Law,  section  144,  page  233. 


WAS    HE   A   PIRATE? 


437 


ter.  He  was  regularly  commissioned  a  captain  in 
the  navy  of  the  United  States,  as  we  have  seen.* 
Was  the  United  States  an  established  power,  a  sov- 
ereign state?  The  United  States  began  to  be  with 
the  Declaration  of  Independence.  To  quote  Wool- 
sey  again :  "  The  sovereignty  of  a  state  dates  from 
its  dc  facto  existence,  and  does  not  depend  upon  its 
recognition  by  foreign  powers.  Thus  the  sover- 
eignty of  the  United  States  was  complete  from  July 
4,  1776,  not  1782,  when  the  English  Government 
recognized,  not  granted,  its  independence."  If  the 
United  States  had  not  a  legal  existence  as  a  sover- 
eign power  competent  to  wage  war,  and  therefore 
to  issue  commissions  to  naval  officers,  until  the 
treaty  of  peace,  England  would  have  granted  in- 
dependence thereby,  instead  of  which  she  recog- 
nized a  long-accomplished  fact.  Moreover,  the 
British  Government,  long  before  peace  was  declared, 
had  conceded  belligerent  rights  to  the  revolted 
colonies,  after  much  protestation.  But  necessary 
privileges  of  belligerency  are  those  of  raising  forces 
and  commissioning  officers  whose  status  as  indi- 
vidual belligerents  is  determined  by  the  recognition. 
None  of  the  American  prisoners  taken  from  time 
to  time  were  hanged  as  rebels  or  traitors,  nor  would 
such  action  have  been  permitted  by  the  British 
people,  if  it  had  been  seriously  entertained  by 
the  king.  Even  if  they  had  captured  Paul  Jones, 
the  English,  in  all  their  fury,  would  not  have  dared 
to  treat  him  as  a  pirate.  Upon  the  point  of  law 

*  And  not  a  captain  of  a  special  ship,  as  was  sometimes 
the  case,  but  a  captain  in  the  service,  and  therefore  eligible 
to  command  any  ship.  See  page  75. 


438  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

there  is  no  justification  for -the  charge.  Paul  Jones' 
commission  was  as  valid  a  document  as  any  under 
which  a  naval  officer  ever  sailed.  The  sovereignty 
of  the  United  States  had  been  recognized  long  be- 
fore the  termination  of  the  war  by  France,  Spain, 
and  Holland,  and  Frederick  the  Great,  by  opening 
the  port  of  Dantzic  to  American  ships,  had  prac- 
tically committed  himself  to  that  side ;  although  the 
failure  of  any  or  all  of  these  to  do  so  would  not 
have  abrogated  our  dc  facto  existence  as  a  nation. 

But,  turning  from  the  subject  of  the  commission 
as  established,  let  us  examine  the  other  phases  in- 
'volved  in  the  charge.  Piracy  consists  of  murder 
and  robbery  in  a  spirit  of  universal  hostility  toward 
humanity  (the  animus  furandi  of  Woolsey's  para- 
graph). Jones  directed  his  attacks  at  England 
alone.  There  was  no  killing  unless  in  open  combat ; 
no  robbery  except  by  taking  ships  and  property 
in  open  warfare,  and  surely  Jones'  conduct  with  re- 
gard to  Selkirk's  plate  was  not  that  of  a  robber  or 
a  pirate !  By  the  law  of  nations  a  pirate,  whatever 
his  nationality,  is  subject  to  the  jurisdiction  of  any 
country.  Thus,  an  English  pirate  caught  by  the 
French  Government,  or  a  French  pirate  caught  by 
the  English  Government,  would  be  summarily  dealt 
with  without  the  slightest  reference  to  the  country 
of  his  nationality.  If  Jones  had  been  a  pirate  France 
would  either  have  made  short  work  of  him,  or  else 
have  incurred  the  odium  of  humanity  as  an  abettor 
of  piracy. 

His  acts  were  not  those  of  an  irresponsible  per- 
son or  a  body  of  people  who  sent  him  forth  with 
malicious  intent,  but  were  undertaken  for  distinctly 


WAS   HE   A   PIRATE?  439 

political  purposes  at  the  instance  of  an  undoubted 
body  politic.  These  purposes  were  :  (i)  The  protec- 
tion of  our  coasts  by  showing  the  vulnerability  of 
the  coasts  of  England.  (2)  The  stoppage  of  the 
ravages  on  our  seaboard,  by  demonstrating  some  of 
their  horrors  in  the  land  of  the  ravagers.  (3)  The 
securing  of  prisoners  by  which  the  principle  of  ex- 
change should  be  established,  and  thus  our  citizens 
released  from  a  captivity  in  which  they  were  treated 
with  scant  regard  to  the  laws  of  humanity.  (4)  The 
breaking  up  of  the  enemy's  commerce  and  the  im- 
pairment of  his  material  resources,  so  that  the  bur- 
den of  consequences  would  induce  him  to  end  the 
war  and  recognize  our  independence.  (5)  The  mak- 
ing of  a  diversion  in  the  north  which  would  facilitate 
the  proposed  grand  operations  of  the  French  and 
Spanish  fleets  in  the  south.  These  are  legitimate 
motives  in  the  highest  sense.  They  are  of  the  deep- 
est importance,  and  they  constitute  a  brief  catalogue 
of  his  accomplishments.  Add  to  the  list  the  shat- 
tering of  British  prestige  by  his  hard  and  successful 
fighting,  and  mention  the  way  he  contrived  to  force 
the  Netherlands  finally  to  declare  for  the  United 
States,  and  we  have  a  catalogue  of  achievements  of 
which  any  one  might  be  proud.* 

*  The  following  interesting  document  was  found  in  his 
papers  ;  it  enumerates  a  few  of  the  things  he  did  :  "  In  1775, 
J.  Paul  Jones  armed  and  embarked  in  the  first  American  ship 
of  war.  In  the  Revolution  he  had  twenty-three  battles  and 
solemn  rencontres  by  sea;  made  seven  descents  in  Britain 
and  her  colonies  ;  took  of  her  navy  two  ships  of  equal,  and 
two  of  superior  force,  many  store  ships,  and  others  ;  con- 
strained her  to  fortify  her  ports  ;  suffer  the  Irish  volunteers  ; 
desist  from  her  cruel  burnings  in  America,  and  exchange,  as 


440  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

There  was  no  thought  in  Jones'  mind  of  private 
gain.  Prize  money  had  accrued  from  captures  from 
time  immemorial,  but  Jones  was  ambitious  of  dis- 
tinction, and  as  anxious  to  worthily  serve  his  coun- 
try as  Farragut  or  Sampson,  and  the  question  of 
prize  money  was  purely  a  minor  one  with  him.  If 
gain  had  been  his  object,  a  privateering  commission 
which  he  was  urged  to  accept  in  France — and  which 
he  could  undoubtedly  have  received  in  America 
— but  which  he  rejected  with  disdain,  would  have 
given  him  greater  opportunity  than  he  ever  enjoyed 
of  acquiring  wealth.  His  whole  career,  in  fact, 
shows  him  to  have  been  absolutely  indifferent  to 
money.  He  never  hoarded  or  amassed  it,  and, 
though  he  received  large  sums  from  time  to  time, 
he  usually  spent  it  in  generous  profusion  as  fast  as 
it  came  in.  Had  professional  advancement  been  his 
sole  desire,  he  would  have  accepted  the  rank  of 
Capitaine  de  Vaisseau — that  is,  a  captain  of  a  ship 
pf  the  line — which  d'Orvilliers  had  offered  to  pro- 
cure for  him,  from  which  he  might  have  progressed 
to  the  highest  naval  rank,  instead  of  which  he  chose 
to  remain  in  command  of  the  petty  little  Ranger. 
How  Laughton  can  deny  his  enthusiasm  for  Amer- 
ica when,  with  but  little  hope  of  reward,  he  periled 
his  liberty  and  his  life  in  her  service,  and  absolutely 
refused  under  any  circumstances  to  withdraw  from 
that  service,  I  fail  to  understand.* 


prisoners  of  war,  the  American  citizens  taken  on  the  ocean, 
and  cast  into  the  prisons  of  England,  as  '  traitors,  pirates, 
and  felons  !  ' ' 

*  Notwithstanding  this,  he  was  as  ambitious   of  glory, 


WAS    HE   A   PIRATE?  441 

He  did  not,  in  defiance  of  law,  charter  a  vessel 
for  the  purpose  of  waging  private  war.  On  the 
contrary,  his  ship  was  provided  by  the  French  king, 
and  commissions  for  those  officers  who  had  not 
been  commissioned  directly  by  Congress,  as  had 
Jones  himself,  were  issued  by  Franklin,  who  pos- 
sessed the  unquestioned  ppwer  to  do  this  by  the 
specific  action  of  Congress.  Indeed,  such  was 
Franklin's  power,  that  when  he  displaced  Landais 
from  his  command  he  did  not  hesitate  to  overrule  a 
commission  issued  by  Congress  under  circum- 
stances of  peculiar  importance,  and  he  was  upheld 
by  that  body  when  his  action  was  called  in  ques- 
tion. 

Nor  did  Jones  take  a  commission  from  two  bel- 
ligerent adversaries — that  is,  he  had  no  commission 
from  England  which  he  threw  up  to  accept  that  of 
the  United  States.  He  had  never  served  in  the 
English  navy  in  any  capacity.  There  were  officers  in 
the  United  States  land  service  who  had  held  Eng- 
lish commissions  and  yet  accepted  American  com- 
mands, but  Jones  was  not  one  of  them.  He  had 
never,  until  he  entered  the  Russian  service,  sailed 
under  any  commission  save  that  of  the  United 
States,  and  one  of  the  noblest  acts  of  his  life  was  his 
indignant  repudiation  of  a  French  letter  of  marque 
when  his  acceptance  of  it  was  considered  the  only 
way  of  saving  his  head.  Nothing  could  induce 

honor,  and  fame  to  himself  in  the  service  of  his  country  as 
Nelson  was.     They  were  both  of  them 

"  Jealous  in  honor,  sudden  and  quick  in  quarrel. 
Seeking  the  bubble  reputation 
Even  in  the  cannon's  mouth." 


442  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

him  to  declare  the  Alliance  a  French  ship  in  those 
hazardous  moments  in  the  Texel  when  he  was  men- 
aced by  the  Dutch  fleet  on  one  side  and  the  Eng- 
lish fleet  on  the  other,  nor  would  he  even  tempora- 
rily hoist  the  French  flag  on  that  ship.  He  did  not 
even  commit  the  so-called  illegal  and  irregular  act 
of  accepting  a  commission  from  two  allies,  for  he 
refused  a  French  commission  again  and  again. 
This  certainly  constitutes  a  clear  and  overwhelming 
refutation  of  the  charge  of  piracy.  Indeed,  on  the 
question  of  piracy,  Jones'  own  ingenious  comment 
is  not  without  interest.  Laughton  has  called  atten- 
tion to  it  in  the  following  words : 

"  Paul  Jqnes  strongly  objected  to  the  word  as 
applied  to  himself;  he  had,  he  said,  looked  in  the 
dictionary  and  found  the  definition  of  pirate  to  be 
'  an  enemy  against  mankind.'  Now,  he  was  not  the 
enemy  of  mankind,  but  only  the  enemy  of  England. 
With  a  tu  quoquc  argument,  not  wanting  in  ingenu- 
ity, he  urged  that,  as  England  was  then  at  war  with 
the  whole  of  America,  the  greater  part  of  Europe, 
and  much  of  Asia,  not  to  speak  of  a  part  of  Africa, 
she,  in  point  of  fact,  came  as  near  being  the  enemy 
of  mankind  as  could  well  be  conceived — that  Eng- 
land was  therefore  the  pirate,  not  Paul  Jones." 

Why  was  it  that  the  English  called  him  a  pirate, 
put  a  price  on  his  head,  and  attempted  to  compass 
his  death  or  capture  by  private  hands  ?  Why  was  it 
that  he  evoked  such  widespread  animosity,  and  be- 
came the  object  of  a  hatred  which  has  not  exhausted 
itself  to  this  day  ?  Surely  not  because  he  had  been 
a  British  subject !  All  who  fought  on  the  American 
side  had  been  British  subjects.  Jones  had  removed 


WHY   THEY    HATE   HIM. 


443 


to  America  and  had  determined  to  settle  there  before 
the  war  broke  out.  Why  should  any  one  attempt 
to  insinuate  that  the  same  feelings  which  actuated 
Adams,  Washington,  and  Patrick  Henry  did  not 
operate  to  make  him  espouse  the  colonial  cause? 
He  was  as  fond  of  freedom  as  they,  and  as  anxious 
to  promote  it. 

Many  of  the  most  distinguished  colonists  were 
not  only  British  subjects,  but  they  had  worn  the 
king's  uniform,  fought  under  the  king's  flag,  and 
eaten  the  king's  bread ;  as,  for  instance,  the  great 
Washington.  Richard  Montgomery,  an  Irishman, 
who  laid  down  a  life  valuable  to  his  adopted  coun- 
try when  he  fell  in  the  assault  on  Quebec,  had  been 
a  British  officer ;  and  there  were  many  others,  some 
of  whom,  like  the  traitor  Charles  Lee  and  the  worth- 
less Gates,  were  actually  half-pay  officers  in  the  Brit- 
ish army  when  they  entered  the  American  service ! 

Among  the  naval  officers,  the  heroic  Biddle,  who 
matched  the  little  Randolph,  of  thirty-two  small 
guns,  against  the  huge  line  of  battle  ship  Yarmouth, 
and  fought  until  his  ship  was  blown  to  pieces,  and  he 
and  all  his  crew  were  lost  except  four  men,  had  been 
a  midshipman  in  the  British  navy  with  Nelson. 
Stout  old  John  Barry,  who  commanded  the  Alliance 
when  he  captured  the  Atlanta  and  the  Trepassy, 
and  fought  the  last  action  of  the  wyar  by  beating  the 
frigate  Sibylle,  of  superior  force,  was  an  Irishman.* 
The  most  bigoted  Englishmen  to-day  speak  of  those 
men  with  respect  which  they  will  not  accord  to 
Jones.  Why  is  this? 

*  See  my  book,  American  Fights  and  Fighters. 


444  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

The  reason  for  the  strange  exception  lies  in  the 
brilliant  success  with  which  he  cruised  and  fought. 
The  English  claimed  and  exercised  an  absolute  and 
practically  undisputed  supremacy  on  the  high  seas. 
Their  arrogant  navy  for  more  than  a  hundred  years 
had  been  invincible.  In  single  ship  actions  they 
had  always  conquered.  No  enemy  had  landed  on 
their  shores  for  over  a  century.  They  could  stand 
being  beaten  on  land — they  were  accustomed  to  it. 
With  few  notable  exceptions  England  does  not  pro- 
duce great  soldiers — Carlyle  feelingly  refers  to  the 
average  English  commander  as  a  "  wooden  hoop 
pole  wearing  a  cocked  hat "  * — but  such  a  line  of 
sailors  as  had  sprung  from  their  shores  has  never 
been  equaled  in  the  history  of  the  world.  Such  sea 
leadership  and  such  sea  fighting  has  never  been  ex- 
ceeded, or  even  equaled,  by  any  nation,  f 

The  capture  of  the  Serapis  was  a  trifling  circum- 
stance ;  it  did  not  impair  the  naval  efficiency  or 
abridge  the  maritime  supremacy  of  England  an  ap- 
preciable degree;  but  it  had  a  moral  significance 

*  The  recent  war  in  South  Africa  demonstrates  the  accu- 
.  racy  of  Carlyle's  perspicuous  observation. 

f  The  United  States  has  shown  that  it  possesses  in  full 
measure  the  sea  adaptability  and  capacity  of  the  Anglo- 
Saxon,  but  opportunity  for  demonstrating  that  capacity,  ex- 
cept upon  a  small  scale,  has  never  been  afforded  us.  The 
almost  unbroken  line  of  victories  on  the  sea,  however,  which 
we  have  won  with  anything  like  equality  of  force  from  Eng- 
lish, French,  and  Spaniards,  enables  us  to  confidently  await 
the  issue  of  any  future  naval  action  under  conditions  of  equali- 
ty ;  and  the  names  of  Jones,  Dale,  Biddle,  Barry,  Preble, 
Hull, Decatur,  Bainbridge,  Lawrence,  Stewart,  MacDonough, 
Perry,  Farragut,  Dewey,  and  Sampson  will  not  be  outshone 
by  any  galaxy. 


THE   STATUS   OF   THE   RICHARD. 


445 


that  could  not  be  misunderstood  by  the  nations  of 
the  world.  They  saw  and  approved.*  English 
ships  had  been  beaten  in  fair  fight,  in  one  instance 
by  a  ship  of  equal,  and  in  the  other  instance  of 
inferior,  force.  The  English  coasts,  in  spite  of 
swarms  of  great  ships  of  the  line,  had  been  shown 
to  be  as  vulnerable  as  any  other,  f  The  affront  had 
been  to  her  pride,  and  never  since  the  days  that 
brave  old  Tromp — gallant  Dutchman,  for  whose 
character  I  have  the  greatest  admiration — swept  the 
narrow  seas  with  a  broom  at  his  masthead,  and  actu- 
ally entered  the  Thames  under  that  same  provoking 
emblem,  had  England  suffered  such,  naval  humilia- 
tion. The  English  cheek  tingles  still  from  the  blow 
dealt  upon  it  by  the  hot-handed  sailor.  Naturally, 
they  did  not  love  Paul  Jones.  The  hatred,  which 
after  a  hundred  years  still  rankles,  is  evidence  of 
what  they  feel — and  what  he  did !  As  for  us,  we 
love  the  bold  little  captain  for  the  enemies  he  has 
made. 

It  has  been  stated  by  unthinking  people  that  the 
Bon  Homme  Richard  was  a  privateer  or  a  letter  of 
marque :  in  one  case  an  armed  vessel  owned  by  pri- 
vate individuals  and  authorized,  under  certain  re- 
strictions, to  cruise  at  private  expense  to  prey  upon 
the  commerce  of  the  enemy ;  in  the  other  case,  an 
armed  vessel  engaged  in  trade,  but  possessing  the 
right  to  capture  ships  of  the  enemy  should  she  hap- 

*  So  careful  and  accurate  an  historian  as  John  Fiske 
makes  the  mistake  of  saying  that  Russia  bestowed  the  order 
of  St.  Anne  on  Jones  for  this  action. 

t  Paul  Jones  and  his  men  were  the  last  foreign  foemen 
to  land  on  the  shores  of  England. 


446  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

pen  to  fall  in  with  them.-  There  is  nothing  dis- 
graceful about  either  of  these  commissions,  though, 
to  be  sure,  their  essence  consists  in  making  war  for 
individual  gain.  The  Bon  Homme  Richard  was 
purchased  and  converted  into  a  man-of-war  by  the 
French  Government,  and  then  loaned  to  the  Ameri- 
can Government  for  the  time  being.  De  Chaumont 
acted  only  as  the  representative  of  the  king — that, 
is,  of  the  Government.  There  was  no  question  of 
individual  gain  in  the  matter.  The  "money  for  the 
sale  of  the  prizes  was  received,  and  the  share  of 
Jones  was  paid,  by  the  French  Government. 
Therefore  it  was  a  Government  ship,  not  a  private 
vessel.  France  and  the  United  States  were  allies  in 
a  war  against  England  when  she  was  commissioned, 
and  the  transaction  was  customary  and  legitimate. 
The  Bon  Homme  Richard  was  as  bona  fide  an 
American  man-of-war  as  the  Constitution.  Of 
course,  there  could  be  no  exception  to  the  status  of 
the  Ranger  or  any  of  the  earlier  ships  in  which  Paul 
Jones  sailed. 

I  have  considered  the  personal  character  and 
professional  status  of  Paul  Jones,  now  let  me  say 
a  few  words  as  to  his  qualities  as  an  officer.  Here 
at  last  we  reach  a  field  in  which  there  is  practically 
little  disagreement.  First  of  all,  he  was  a  thorough 
and  accomplished  seaman.  His  experiences  had 
been  many  and  varied.  His  handling  of  the  Provi- 
dence in  the  Gut  of  Canso,  of  the  Alfred  along  the 
coast  of  Cape  Breton,  his  splendid  seamanship  in 
the  Ariel  in  the  terrific  gale  off  the  Penmarques,  his 
daring  passage  of  the  Baltic  amid  the  winter  gales 
and  ice,  not  to  speak  of  the  way  he  maneuvered  the 


AS   A   SEAMAN.  447 

Richard  in  the  battle  with  the  Serapis,  all  tell  the 
same  story  of  skill  and  address.  Not  only  did  he 
understand  the  sailing  of  ships,  but  he  acquired  no 
small  familiarity  with  the  principles  of  naval  archi- 
tecture. Witness  his  remodeling  of  the  Alliance, 
the  improvements  he  introduced  in  the  America, 
and  the  skillful  way  he  managed  the  launching  of 
that  ship.  Some  of  his  suggestions  were  radical, 
and  some  of  the  principles  he  laid  down  were  em- 
bodied in  shipbuilding  by  naval  architects  until  the 
advent  of  the  ironclad  age. 

He  was  a  stern  disciplinarian,  and  usually  man- 
aged to  work  his  very  indifferent  crews  into  some- 
thing like  fair  shape.  In  none  of  his  commands  did 
he  have  a  first-class  crew  of  American  seamen,  such 
as  the  1812  frigates  exhibited.  His  sway  on  his 
ships  was  absolute.  His  officers  were  generally 
creatures  of  his  own  making  (Simpson  being  an 
exception),  and  completely  under  his  domination ; 
with  few  exceptions,  like  Dale,  whom  he  loved  and 
respected,  they  were  poor  enough.  In  his  passion- 
ate impatience  with  their  stupidity  or  inefficiency, 
he  sometimes  treated  them  with  great  indignity, 
even  going  to  the  length  of  kicking  them  out  of  the 
cabin  when  they  displeased  him.*  He  was  a  fierce 
commander,  who  brooked  no  interference,  needed 
no  suggestions,  and  had  no  tolerance  for-  ignorance 
and  incapacity.  Notwithstanding  all  this,  he  was  a 
,  merciful  captain  in  an  age  in  which  the  gospel  of 

*  See  Park  Benjamin's  History  of  the  Naval  Academy 
for  similar  instances  on  the  part  of  less  famous  captains. 
Personal  abuse  was  a  custom  of  the  service,  apparently. 


448  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

force,  punctuated  by  the  .cat-o'-nine-tails,  was  the 
only  one  in  vogue  on  ships  of  war.  He  resorted  but 
rarely  to  the  practice  of  flogging,  and  in  comparison 
with  most  commanders  of  the  period  his  rule  was 
not  intolerable.  He  did  not,  however,  inspire  affec- 
tion in  his  crews ;  they  respected  his  talents,  trusted 
to  his  skill,  and  admired  his  courage,  but  nothing 
more.  His  men  were  drilled  and  exercised  inces- 
santly, and  target  practice  was  had  as  frequently  as 
the  poverty  of  his  supplies  permitted.  His  ships 
were  all  notably  clean  and  orderly. 

As  a  commander  we  may  consider  his  achieve- 
ments from  three  points  of  view:  as  a  strategist, 
as  a  tactician,  and  as  a  fighter.  Strategic  operations 
tend  to  bring  you  where  sound  policy  dictates  you 
should  be,  while  tactical  maneuvers  refer  to  the 
manipulation  of  your  force  at  the  point  of  contact. 
A  man  may  be  a  brilliant  strategist  and  a  poor  tac- 
tician, or  the  reverse ;  or  he  may  be  both,  and  yet  not 
be  a  hard,  determined  fighter.  Jones  was  all  three 
in  large  measure.  His  strategic  conceptions  were 
excellent.  His  successful  destruction  of  the  fishery 
industry  at  Canso,  and  his  attempt  upon  the  coal 
fleet  in  the  Alfred ;  the  brilliant  plan  which  would 
have  resulted  in  the  capture  of  Lord  Howe  by 
d'Estaing  if  it  had  been  carried  out  in  time ;  the 
project  he  conceived  for  taking  the  homeward- 
bound  East  Indiamen  by  capturing  St.  Helena  as  a 
base  of  attack,  and  the  other  enterprises  he  urged 
upon  the  French  Government  indicate  these  things ; 
but  the  conception  which  lifted  him  above  the  ordi- 
nary sea  officer  was  his  acute  realization  of  the  great 
principle  that  should  regulate  commerce  destroying, 


AS   A   STRATEGIST. 


449 


which  is  one  of  the  legitimate  objects  of  warfare,  and 
merciful  in  that  it  tends  to  end  the  conflict,  and  is 
aimed  at  property  rather  than  life. 

His  idea  was  that,  to  be  successfully  accom- 
plished, it  could  not  be  committed  to  the  cruiser  or 
commerce  destroyer,  but  that  attacks  on  centers  of 
trade  must  be  made  by  forces  sufficiently  mobile 
to  enable  them  to  cover  great  distances  rapidly,  and 
sufficiently  strong  to  defeat  any  reasonable  force, 
and  then  crush  the  enemy's  commerce  at  vital 
points.  A  single  ship  may  catch  a  single  ship  upon 
the  high  seas,  or  from  a  fleet  in  convoy  perhaps  cut 
out  two  or  three ;  but  a  descent  upon  a  great  body 
of  shipping  in  a  harbor — unprotected  as  were  the 
harbors  of  those  days — would  result  in  an  infinitely 
greater  loss  to  the  enemy.  Mahan  has  demon- 
strated that  the  necessary  preliminary  to  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  enemy's  commerce  is  to  batter  his  navy 
to  pieces — then  it  is  at  one's  mercy.  So  far  as 
I  know,  Jones  is  the  only  sailor  of  his  day,  or  of 
many  subsequent  days  in  any  navy,  who  had  a 
glimmer  of  an  idea  in  this  direction ;  and,  without 
detracting  from  Mahan's  originality,  in  a  limited 
sense  Jones  forestalled  him.  Mahan,  indeed,  gives 
him  full  credit  for  his  genius  on  this  very  point. 

The  beginning  of  strategy  is  to  determine  the 
vital  point  at  which  to  aim,  and  Jones  began  well. 
He  tried  to  carry  out  his  idea  of  commerce  destroy- 
ing with  the  Ranger  in  the  Irish  Channel,  and  he 
came  near  enough  to  success  to  demonstrate  the  ab- 
solute feasibility  and  value  of  his  conception,  given 
adequate  force  to  carry  it  out.  He  had  a  greater 
force,  of  course,  under  his  partial  command  in  his 
30 


450  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

famous  cruise  in  the  Bon  H-omme  Richard,  but  the 
peculiar  constitution  of  that  squadron,  which  was  an 
assemblage  of  co-operative  ships  rather  than  a  com- 
pact body  responsive  and  obedient  to  one  will,  also 
prevented  him  from  carrying  out  his  plans.  Sup- 
pose, for  instance,  that  the  Alliance  had  obeyed  his 
orders,  and  that  the  Vengeance,  the  Cerf,  and  the 
privateers  had  remained  with  the  Pallas  under  his 
command,  and  that  all  had  been  well  officered  and 
manned !  He  would  have  taken  the  Serapis  in  half 
an  hour  or  less,  and  the  great  Baltic  fleet,  worth  mil- 
lions of  dollars,  would  have  been  at  his  mercy. 
What  he  attempted  at  Leith  he  could  have  carried 
out  at  Newcastle  and  Hull. 

The  largest  force  under  his  command  was  the 
Russian  squadron  in  the  Liman.  He  chose  his  ad- 
mirable position  there  with  an  eye  to  its  strategic 
possibilities,  and  it  was  due  to  him,  and  not  to  the 
trained  and  veteran  soldier  Suvorof,  that  the  fort 
was  placed  on  Kinburn  Point,  which  practically  de- 
termined the  fate  of  Otchakoff,  since  it  prevented 
the  Turks  from  re-enforcing  their  fleet,  and  kept 
them  from  escaping  after  Jones  had  defeated  them. 
Fortune  never  gave  him  an  opportunity,  but  it  can 
not  be  doubted  from  what  he  did  accomplish  with 
an  inferior  force  that  if  he  had  been  given  a  chance 
he  wrould  have  made  a  name  for  himself  as  a  sea 
strategist  not  inferior  to  that  of  Nelson  or  Sampson. 

As  a  tactician  he  was  even  more  able — perhaps 
because  he  enjoyed  better  opportunities.  It  was 
seamanship  and  tactics  which  enabled  him  to  escape 
from  the  Solebay,  and  it  was  seamanship  and  tactics 
by  which  he  diverted  the  Milford  from  the  pursuit 


AS  A  TACTICIAN.  451 

of  his  prizes  and  insured  their  safety.  His  tactics 
when  he  fought  the  Drake  were  admirable.  In  his 
famous  battle  with  the  Serapis  they  were  even  more 
striking.  One  never  ceases  to  wonder  how  he  suc- 
ceeded in  maneuvering  his  slow,  unwieldy  ship  so 
as  to  nullify  the  greater  speed  and  gun  power  of 
the  Serapis.  His  action  in  laying  the  Bon  Homme 
Richard  aboard  the  English  frigate  was  the  one 
chance  that  he  had  of  success,  "and  he  made  that 
chance  himself. 

His  tactics  in  the  Liman  were  even  higher  than 
elsewhere.  It  was  he  who  so  maneuvered  the  boats 
of  the  flotilla  on  June  I7th  as  to  precipitate  the 
flight  of  the  Turks ;  it  was  he  who  again,  on  June 
28th  and  29th,  so  placed  his  ships  that  he  drove  the 
Turks  from  their  stranded  flagships.  It  was  he  who 
dispatched  the  flotilla  to  clear  the  right  flank,  which 
would  have  enabled  the  Russians  to  take  possession 
of  the  two  frigates  if  Nassau  had  not  foolishly 
burned  them.  It  was  he  who,  by  his  splendid  dis- 
position of  his  ships  and  the  battery  on  the  point, 
forced  the  Turkish  ships  to  take  ground  upon  the 
shoals,  in  their  attempt  to  escape,  where  Nassau  de- 
stroyed them.  On  the  other  hand,  he  was  never 
reckless.  He  coolly  calculated  chances  and  judi- 
ciously chose  the  right  course,  and  he  was  happy  in 
that  the  right  course  was  usually  the  bold  and  dar- 
ing one. 

In  the  third  capacity  of  an  officer,  there  is  no 
question  as  to  his  willingness  and  ability  to  fight. 
No  one  ever  called  him  a  coward.  He  certainly 
exhibited  the  very  highest  reach  of  physical  brav- 
ery. It.  was  not  the  courage  of  the  braggart,  for  he 


452  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

was  not  continually  thrusting  it  in  the  face  of  people 
on  all  occasions.  Having  established  his  reputa- 
tion, he  was  content  to  rest  upon  it,  and  did  not  seek 
opportunity — which  he  did  not  need — for  further 
demonstration.  Nothing  could  surpass  the  per- 
sonal courage  and  determination  with  which  he 
fought  his  ships.  Unlike  most  commanders,  who 
confine  their  efforts  to  direction,  he  labored  and 
fought  with  his  own  hands. 

We  find  him  heading  the  boarders  on  the  fore- 
castle of  the  Richard,  and,  p:ke  in  hand,  repelling 
those  from  the  Serapis  ;  he  assists  in  lashing  the  two 
ships  together ;  he  takes  personal  command  of  the 
quarter-deck  guns,  one  of  which,  with  the  assistance 
of  a  few  resolute  souls,  he  dragged  across  the  deck 
from  the  unengaged  side.  When  the  Ariel  was 
drifting  in  deadly  peril  upon  the  Penmarques,  with 
his  own  hand  he  heaves  the  lead.  At  Kinburn, 
after  repeated  efforts  to  get  the  galley  fleet  to  move, 
he  leads  it  forward  himself.  To  ascertain  the  depth 
of  water,  he  goes  in  a  small  boat  under  the  walls  of 
Otchakoff,  within  easy  range  of  the  cannon.  He 
takes  his  barge  on  the  Liman  in  the  midst  of  the 
hottest  engagement,  and  rows  about  through  the 
contestants.  When  the  assault  is  made  on  the 
flotilla  under  the  walls  of  that  town,  he  leads  in 
person,  and  captures  two  gunboats  by  boarding. 
At  Whitehaven,  alone  he  confronts  a  mob  and  keeps 
them  in  check  until  the  fire  which  he  started  him- 
self has  gained  sufficient  headway.  The  bullying 
of  the  Dutch  admiral  in  the/Texel  can  not  move  him 
a  single  foot. 

While    he    did    not    alwavs    exhibit    the    same 


AS   A   FIGHTER.  453 

amount  of  moral  courage,  yet  in  some  very  interest- 
ing situations  he  showed  that  he  possessed  it  in 
large  measure.  His  physical  courage  was,  of 
course,  natural.  His  moral  courage  seems  to  have 
arisen  in  part  from  an  absolute  confidence  in  his 
own  ability  and  an  habitual  reliance  upon  the  ac- 
curacy of  his  own  judgment.  He  showed  this  moral 
courage  when,  at  the  peril  of  his  commission,  he 
assumed  the  responsibility  of  piloting  the  Alfred  to 
her  anchorage  in  the  Bahama  expedition.  He 
showed  it  particularly  when,  after  assuming  the 
proper  position  demanded  by  good  strategy  in  the 
opening  of  the  Liman  campaign,  he  refused  to  be 
moved  from  it  by  the  representations  of  such  fire 
eaters  as  Nassau  and  Alexiano.  His  declining  to 
hoist  the  French  flag,  or  to  sail  under  a  French 
letter  of  marque,  were  evidences  of  this  quality,  and 
he  showed  it  again  by  sending  a  present  to  Louis 
XVI  in  the  dark  days  of  the  Revolution,  when  re- 
spect to  the  king  in  his  hours  of  humiliation  marked 
a  man  immediately. 

On  the  other  hand,  he  showed  ?  sad  lack  of 
moral  courage  if  de  Segur's  statement  be  true  that 
he  found  him,  pistol  in  hand,  in  his  apartments  in 
St.  Petersburg,  apparently  contemplating  suicide. 
Moral  courage  is  perhaps  a  more  universal  requisite 
for  true  greatness  of  character  than  any  other  vir- 
tue, and  he  did  not  rise  in  this  sphere  quite  to  the 
height  he  attained  in  the  others.  In  other  words, 
he  was  greater  as  a  commander  and  as  an  officer 
than  as  a  man. 

As  a  commander  he  made  mistakes.  What  com- 
mander did  not?  His  quickness  to  imagine  or  to 


454  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

resent  a  slight  was  marred  by  too  great  a  will- 
ingness to  forgive.  His  treatment  of  the  mutinous 
Simpson  was  entirely  too  gentle  and  forgiving  for 
the  maintenance  of  that  discipline  necessary  to  the 
welfare  of  the  service.  It  was  certainly  a  mistake 
to  yield  to  Landais'  importunities  and  leave  the 
advantageous  situation  off  Limerick,  and,  as  I  have 
stated,  the  excuse  was  worse  than  the  action.  His 
failure  to  keep  his  promise  to  his  men  after  leaving 
Corunna  in  the  Alliance  was  a  more  serious  blunder. 
There  are  few  professions  in  which  the  word  of  an 
officer  is  so  implicitly  relied  upon  by  his  inferiors  as 
in  the  naval  service.  The  lives  of  the  crew  are  so 
entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  officers  that  without 
confidence  the  situation  is  impossible.  His  extrava- 
gant outfitting  of  the  Alliance  was  also  a  wrong  to 
Franklin  under  the  circumstances.  His  method  of 
dealing  with  the  mutiny  on  the  Alliance  and  with 
Landais'  successful  attempt  to  get  command  of  her 
was  weak,  and  can  only  be  explained  by  the  postula- 
tion  that  he  did  not  really  desire  to  get  possession 
of  her ;  but  even  the  explanation  leaves  him  in  a  bad 
position.  His  dawdling  at  L'Orient  is  also  censur- 
able. This,  however,  is  a  small  catalogue  in  view  of 
what  he  attempted  and  accomplished.  Otherwise 
in  his  campaigns  and  in  his  military  life  he  made  no 
blunders. 

He  has  been  severely  censured  for  choosing 
localities  with  which  he  was  familiar  from  childhood 
as  the  scene  of  his  military  operations.  The  war 
of  the  Revolution  was  practically  a  civil  war,  with 
all  the  rancorous  passions  attendant  thereon  super- 
added  to  those  ordinarily  engendered  in  conflict.  In 


A   CIVILIZED   WARRIOR. 


455 


America,  friend  met  friend  in  deadly  hatred,  and 
not  one  royalist  or  rebel  hesitated  to  use  his  local 
knowledge  for  the  advancement  of  his  cause.  In 
accordance  with  his  duty,  by  his  oath  as  an  officer, 
Jones  was  bound  to  put  all  the  information  as  well 
as  the  ability  he  possessed  at  the  services  of  the 
country  under  whose  flag  he  fought.  He  was  not 
born  at  Whitehaven,  and,  while  he  had  sailed  from 
the  port  many  times,  he  had  no  special  attachment 
for  the  place  and  people  which  comes  from  long 
association  in  society  and  business.  When  he  made 
his  famous  descent  upon  the  place  it  was  seven 
years  since  he  had  set  foot  in  it.  At  any  rate,  he 
was  only  doing  in  England  what  other  people  on 
both  sides  were  doing  in  America  without  censure, 
and  he  was  .doing  it  with  so  much  more  respect  to 
the  laws  of  civilized  warfare,  and  with  so  much 
more  mercy,  that  there  is  no  comparison  between 
his  forays  and  those,  let  us  say,  of  Lord  Dunmore, 
for  instance,  or  Mowatt  at  Portland.  The  journal 
of  an  officer  of  the  Serapis,  who  was  killed  in  the 
action,  was  found  after  the  battle  was  over.  He 
had  been  under  Dunmore's  command  in  Virginia 
at  the  outbreak  of  the  Revolution,  and  such  a  tale 
of  maraudings,  accompanied  by  destruction  of 
property,  murdering,  and  outraging  of  women  as 
the  volume  contained  would  have  been  incredible 
had  it  not  been  confirmed  by  the  statement  of 
hundreds  of  witnesses  in  America.  None  of  this 
kind  of  warfare  was  waged  where  Jones  com- 
manded. 

A  century  and  a  decade,  lacking  two  years,  have 
elapsed  since  the  lonely  little  commander  entered 


456  COMMODORE    PAUL  JONES. 

upon  his  long,  long  rest ;  and  the  country  whose 
first  banner  was  hoisted  by  his  hands  at  the  mast- 
head of  the  Alfred,  whose  permanent  standard  was 
flung  to  the  breeze  by  the  same  hands  from  the 
truck  of  the  Ranger,  whose  ensign  was  first  saluted 
by  one  of  the  greatest  powers  of  the  world  through 
his  address  and  determination,  whose  flag  was  made 
respectable  in  the  eyes  of  the  world  by  the  desper- 
ate gallantry  with  which  he  fought  under  it,  which 
alone  among  the  powers  that  sailed  the  sea  through 
him  demonstrated  its  ability  to  meet  successfully 
the  Mistress  of  the  Ocean,  has  done  nothing  to  per- 
petuate the  memory  of  this  founder  of  the  Republic 
and  rescue  him  from  oblivion.  The  place  of  his 
grave  is  known,  but  squalid  tenements  and  cheap 
stores  have  been  erected  over  his  remains.  Com- 
merce, trade,  and  traffic,  restless  life  with  its  pas- 
sions, noble  and  ignoble,  flows  on  above  his  head, 
and  it  is  probable  that  so  it  will  be  until  the  end  of 
time.  "  So  runs  the  world  away !  " 

It  is  all  so  mournful  in  some  strange  way.  In 
spite  of  his  glory  and  his  heroism,  in  spite  of  his 
strenuous  life  and  his  strugglings,  the  note  that 
lingers  in  my  mind  as  I  write  these  concluding 
words  is  one  of  sadness.  I  read  of  hopes  that 
brought  no  fruition ;  of  plans  made  and  abandoned ; 
of  opportunities  that  could  not  be  embraced ;  of 
great  attempts  frustrated  by  inadequate  means ;  of 
triumphs  forgotten.  I  see  a  great  life  that  might  have 
been  greater,  a  man  of  noble  qualities  marred  by 
petty  faults,  and  yet  I  love  him.  I  can  not  tell  why 
exactly,  but  the  \vords  of  Solomon  come  into  my 
mind  as  the  vision  of  the  little  captain  appears  be- 


FAREWELL. 


457 


fore  me,  dying  alone  of  a  broken  heart,  fretted  away 
— Vanitas  vanitatem. 

And  yet  he  did  not  live  in  vain,  and  his  exploits 
shall  live  forever  in  the  minds  of  his  countrymen. 
So  long  as  we  possess  that  masculine  virility  which 
is  the  heritage  of  a  great  nation  whose  rugged  coasts 
are  washed  by  thousands  of  leagues  of  beating  seas ; 
so  long  as  the  beautiful  flag  we  love  waves  above 
the  mighty  Republic,  which,  true  to  the  princi- 
ples of  its  founders,  stands  in  every  quarter  of  the 
globe  for  freedom  of  person,  for  liberty  of  con- 
science, for  respect  to  law,  so  long  shall  the  story 
be  told  of  the  little  captain  from  the  far  land  who 
loved  these  things,  and  who  fought  so  heroically 
to  establish  and  to  maintain  them. 


APPENDIX   I. 

CONCERNING  JOHN  PAUL'S  ASSUMPTION  OF  THE 
NAME   OF   JONES. 

A. 

Letter  of  Mr.    W.  M.  dimming,  of  Wilmington,  N.  C.t 
May  ji,  1899. 

"  John  Paul  adopted  the  name  of  Jones  in  token  of 
affectionate  regard  for  the  Honorable  Willie  (pro- 
nounced Wylie)  Jones,  of  North  Carolina,  and  his  beau- 
tiful and  charming  wife,  who  had  both  been  very  kind  to 
him  in  his  days  of  obscurity.  He  was  particularly  de- 
voted to  Mrs.  Jones,  and  called  himself  her  son.  It  was 
through  the  influence  of  Honorable  Willie  Jones  (mem- 
ber of  Congress,  I  think,  from  North  Carolina),  that  John 
Paul  obtained  his  commission  in  the  navy  of  the  young 
Republic,  and  it  was  about  this  time  that  he  adopted  the 
name  of  his  friend  and  patron." 

B. 

Letter  of  Mr.   Junius  Davis,  of  Wilmingtnn,  N.  C., 
February  23,  1900. 

"  I  first  heard  from  my  father,  the  late  Hon.  George 
Davis,  who  was  a  devoted  student  of  the  history  of  North 
Carolina,  and  perhaps  the  highest  authority  in  the  State 
upon  such  subjects,  that  Paul,  shortly  after  going  to  Vir- 
ginia to  take  the  estate  left  him  by  his  brother,  met 
Willie  Jones  of  this  State;  that  Jones  took  a  fancy  to  him 
and  invited  him  to  pay  him  a  visit  in  North  Carolina;  that 
Paul  did  so  and  remained  quite  a  long  time  with  him  and 
became  so  attached  to  Jones  and  his  wife  that  he  adopted 
their  name.  Willie — pronounced  Wylie — Jones  and  his 

459 


460  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

brother  Allan  were  educated  at  Eton,  and  were  gentlemen 
of  large  means,  high  ability,  and  devoted  Whigs.  They 
were  prominent  in  every  movement  and  assembly  in  this 
State  prior  to  and  during  the  Revolution.  Allan  lived 
upon  his  plantation,  '  Mount  Gallant,'  in  Halifax  County, 
and  Willie  upon  his,  '  The  Grove,'  in  the  adjoining  county 
of  North  Hampton.  They  were  warm  friends  and  asso- 
ciates of  Joseph  Hewes,  of  Edenton,  one  of  the  dele- 
gates from  North  Carolina  to  the  first  and  second  Pro- 
vincial Congresses.  Wheeler,  the  historian  of  North 
Carolina  in  his  Reminiscences  and  Memoirs  of  North 
Carolina  and  Eminent  North  Carolinians,  says  as  follows: 
'  The  daring  and  celebrated  John  Paul  Jones,  whose 
real  name  was  John  Paul,  of  Scotland,  when  quite  young 
visited  Mr.  Willie  Jones  at  Halifax,  and  became  so  fasci- 
nated with  him  and  his  charming  wife  that  he  adopted 
their  family  name.  Under  this  name,  John  Paul  Jones, 
he  offered  his  services  to  Congress  and  was  made  a  lieu- 
tenant, December  22,  1775,  on  the  recommendation  of 
Willie  Jones.'  .  .  .  Jones  in  the  very  outset  of  his  Auto- 
biography says:  'I  at  the  same  time  acquainted  Mr. 
Hewes,  a  member  of  Congress  and  my  particular  friend, 
with  the  project  for  seizing  the  island  of  St.  Helena,'  etc. 
This  is  the  Mr.  Hewes  mentioned  above.  In  the  second 
Congress  Hewes  was  at  the  head  of  the  committee  in 
charge  of  naval  affairs,  and  was  virtually  the  first  Secre- 
tary of  the  Navy.  Paul  could  only  have  known  Hewes, 
whom  he  calls  his  particular  friend,  through  the  Joneses, 
and  it  has  always  been  one  of  the  traditions  of  this  State 
that  it  was  the  Jones  influence  with  Hewes  that  got 
Paul  his  lieutenancy  in  the  American  navy.  In  a  let- 
ter received  recently  from  my  aged  kinsman,  Colonel 
Cadwallader  Jones,  of  Rock  Hill,  South  Carolina,  a 
lineal  descendant  of  Allan  Jones,  I  find  that  Colonel 
Jones'  mother  was  a  granddaughter  of  General  Allan 
Jones,  was  raised  by  him,  married  in  1810,  and  lived 
in  Halifax  until  1826.  Up  to  this  time  she  was  a  fre- 
quent visitor  at  '  The  Grove,'  the  residence  of  Willie 
Jones,  as  was  also  Colonel  Cadwallader  Jones.  The  lat- 
ter, who  is  now  eighty-six  years  of  age,  has  always  heard 
that  John  Paul  assumed  the  name  of  Jones  as  a  mark 
of  respect  and  affection  for  these  brothers,  Willie  and 
Allan  Jones,  and  for  the  wife  of  the  former,  whose  vir- 
tues might  well  win  the  admiration  of  any  man.  Colonel 


APPENDIX    I.  461 

Jones  remembers  his  aunt,  Mrs.  Willie  Jones,  perfectly; 
she  survived  her  husband  many  years.  The  statement  that 
John  Paul  was  invited  by  Willie  Jones  to  visit  '  The  Grove  ' 
while  he  was  looking  after  his  property  in  Virginia  is  cor- 
roborated by  Colonel  Jones.  ...  I  quote  the  following 
from  newspaper  clippings: 

"  i.  From  the  Charleston  Observer  of  November,  1899: 

"  '  FREDERICKSBURG,  VA.,  November  i&tb. 

'  The  announcement  that  the  remains  of  that  distin- 
guished naval  hero,  John  Paul  Jones,  have  been  located 
in  Paris,  France,  brings  to  light  that  the  deceased  was 
once  a  resident  of  this  city.  According  to  the  records  of 
the  county  court,  he  came  here  in  1773  to  administer  on  the 
records  of  his  brother,  William  Paul,  who  lived  here  in 
1772.  William  Paul  came  here  in  1760  and  shortly  afterward 
entered  the  mercantile  business,  in  which  he  was  engaged 
up  to  the  time  of  his  death.  The  store  occupied  by  him 
is  on  the  corner  of  Main  and  Market  Streets,  and  is  the 
same  building  in  which  George  Washington  was  made  a 
Mason.  Tradition  also  says  that  one  of  the  rooms  in  the 
building  was  used  by  John  Paul  during  his  residence  here, 
which  was  nearly  two  years,  as  his  lodging  quarters.  It 
was  also  during  his  citizenship  here  that  he  received  his 
appointment  from  the  Colonial  Congress  as  lieutenant 
in  the  navy.  It  was  here,  too,  that  he  added  Jones  to  his 
patronymic,  which,  it  is  said,  was  in  token  of  the  friendly 
act  of  Colonel  Willie  Jones,  of  North  Carolina,  who  be- 
came his  bondsman  for  five  hundred  pounds  when  he  ad- 
ministered on  his  brother's  estate.' 

"  2.  The  State,  Columbia,  S.  C,  Monday,  November 
6,  1899: 

"  'SARATOGA,  BUCKINGHAM  COUNTY,  VA.,  February  22,  1899. 

"  ' .  .  .  While  no  Revolutionary  biography  can  boast 
more  public  events  of  vivid  and  intense  interest  than  that 
of  Paul  Jones,  none  is  so  bare  and  meager  in  personal 
detail.  Even  the  fact  that  he  has  immortalized  a  name 
which  was  his  only  by  selection  and  adoption  is  slurred 
over  in  history  with  the  calm  statement  that  "  he  changed 
his  name  for  unknown  reasons."  As  the  reasons  were  not 
unknown,  and,  however  difficult  to  obtain  later,  were 
then  easily  accessible,  it  appears  to  have  been  rather  a 
lack  of  careful  and  intelligent  investigation  than  of  facts 


462  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

which  caused  their  suppression.  They  are  now  for  the 
first  time  given  to  the  public.  ...  In  1773,  the  death  of 
his  brother  in  Virginia,  whose  heir  he  was,  induced  him 
to  settle  in  America.  It  was  then  he  added  to  his  name 
and  thenceforth  was  known  as  "Paul  Jones."  This  was 
done  in  compliment  to  one  of  the  most  noted  statesmen 
of  that  day,  and  in  the  love  and  gratitude  it  shadows  forth 
is  a  scathing  reproach  and  a  touching  example  to  a  people 
who  could  neglect  in  life  and  forget  in  death.  It  appears 
that  before  permanently  settling  in  Virginia,  moved  by 
the  restlessness  of  his  old  seafaring  life,  he  wandered  about 
the  country,  finally  straying  to  North  Carolina.  There  he 
became  acquainted  with  two  brothers,  Willie  and  Allan 
Jones.  They  were  both  leaders  in  their  day,  and  wise 
and  honored  in  their  generation.  Allan  Jones  was  an 
orator  and  silver-tongued;  Willie  Jones,  the  foremost 
man  of  his  State,  and  one  of  the  most  remarkable  of  his 
time.  .  .  . 

'  His  home,  "  The  Grove,"  near  Halifax,  was  not  only 
the  resort  of  the  cultivated,  the  refined,  but  the  home  of 
the  homeless,  Mrs.  Jones  having  sometimes  twenty  orphan 
girls  under  her  charge,  and  it  was  here  the  young  adven- 
turer, John  Paul  Jones,  was  first  touched  by  those  gentler 
and  purer  influences  which  changed  not  only  his  name 
but  himself,  from  the  rough  and  reckless  mariner  into  the 
polished  man  of  society,  who  was  the  companion  of  kings 
and  the  lion  and  pet  of  Parisian  salons.  The  almost  wor- 
shiping love  and  reverence  awakened  in  his  hitherto  wild 
and  untamed  nature  by  the  generous  kindness  of  these 
brothers  found  expression  in  his  adoption  of  their  name. 
The  truth  of  this  account  is  ...  attested  by  the  descend- 
ants of  Willie  Jones. 

' '  In  addition  to  the  above,  I  would  say  that  General 
Allan  Jones  of  the  Revolution  was  my  great-great-grand- 
father. My  grandmother  was  raised  by  him,  and  was 
often  at  "  The  Grove,"  the  residence  of  her  great-uncle, 
Willie  Jones.  My  father,  Colonel  Cadwallader  Jones, 
now  eighty-six  years  of  age,  in  his  youth  was  also  often 
an  inmate  of  "  The  Grove,"  and  heard  the  facts  spoken 
in  both  families. 

'  '  A.  I.  ROBERTSON, 
' '  Secretary  Columbia  Chapter,  D.  A.  R.'  " 


APPENDIX   I.  463 


C. 

Letter  of  Mrs.  A.  I.  Robertson,  of  Columbia,  S.  C., 
April  14,  igoo. 

"  John  Pa,ul  was  thrown  more  with  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Willie  Jones,  I  think,  than  Allan,  as  he  was  more  at  '  The 
Grove  '  (the  residence  of  Willie  Jones)  than  at  '  Mount 
Gallant '  (the  residence  of  Allan  Jones),  though  a  great 
deal  at  both  places.  I  have  an  exact  facsimile  of  the  com- 
mission which  these  brothers  got  for  him,  which  appeared 
in  the  World,  February  n,  1900. 

"  Mrs.  Allan  Jones  was  Mary  Haynes,  married  1762; 
their  daughter  Sarah  married  General  William  R.  Davis. 

"  Mrs.  Willie  Jones  was  Mary  Mumford,  daughter  of 
Joseph  Mumford,  son  of  Robert  Mumford  and  wife  Anne, 
daughter  of  Robert  Bland.  These  two  Mrs.  Jones  are 
spoken  of  in  Mrs.  Elliot's  Women  of  the  Revolution, 
Wheeler's  History  of  North  Carolina,  and  Appletons' 
Cyclopaedia  of  American  Biography. 

"  I  quote  you  the  following  from  the  family  book  of  my 
father:  '  When  the  army  of  Cornwallis  passed  through 
Halifax  to  Virginia,  his  officers  quartered  for  some  time 
in  the  town.  Colonel  Tarleton  was  at  "  The  Grove,"  the 
residence  of  Willie  Jones.  He  had  been  wounded  in  the 
hand  at  Cowpens  by  a  sabre  cut  by  Colonel  William 
Washington.  Speaking  of  Colonel  Washington,  Tarleton 
said  he  was  a  common,  illiterate  fellow,  hardly  able  to 
write  his  name.  "  Ah,  colonel,"  said  Mrs.  Jones,  "  you 
ought  to  know  better,  for  you  bear  upon  your  person 
proof  that  he  knows  very  well  how  to  mark  his  mark."  ' 
I  inclose  a  MS.  of  my  father  on  the  subject,  which  you 
are  at  liberty  to  copy." 

MS.  of  Colonel  Cadivallader  Jones  inclosed  in 
above  Letter. 

"  Paul  Jones — Why  he  changed  his  name — Colonel  Hubard's  account. 

"  A  recent  sketch  of  the  life  of  Paul  Jones  in  the  Cen- 
tury has  revived  the  memory  of  his  gallant  achievements, 
and  rekindled  public  interest  in  this  famous  hero.  There  is 
much  inquiry  as  to  his  reason  for  adopting  the  name  of 
Jones.  It  is  not  a  little  remarkable  that  such  an  incident 
in  the  life  of  one  so  renowned  should  be  so  soon  forgotten. 


464  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

"  Let  me  tell  you  what  I  know  about  this  man  and  how 
I  know  it;  the  public  mind  needs  to  be  refreshed.  When 
John  Paul  came  to  Virginia,  some  three  years  before  the 
war  of  the  Revolution,  looking  after  an  estate  left  him 
by  his  brother,  he  visited  Halifax,  North  Carolina,  at  that 
time  a  place  of  considerable  repute.  Here  he  made  the 
acquaintance  of  those  grand  old  patriots,  Allen  and  Willie 
Jones;  he  was  a  young  man  but  an  old  tar,  with  a  bold, 
frank  sailor  bearing  that  attracted  their  attention;  he  be- 
came a  frequent  visitor  at  their  homes,  where  he  was 
always  welcome;  he  soon  grew  fond  of  them,  and  as  a 
mark  of  his  esteem  and  admiration,  he  adopted  their  name. 
Why  John  Paul  became  John  Paul  Jones — it  was  his 
fancy.  .  .  ." 

D. 

Letter  of  General  Edward  McCrady,  of  Charleston,  S.  C., 
April  j,  1900. 

"  Mrs.  McCrady  was  the  granddaughter  of  General 
William  R.  Davie,  of  Revolutionary  fame,  who  married 
the  daughter  of  General  Allan  Jones,  of  Mount  Gallant, 
Northampton,  North  Carolina.  Tradition  in  her  branch 
of  the  family  has  been  that  it  was  Allan  Jones  who  be- 
friended John  Paul,  and  not  his  brother  Willie — pro- 
nounced IVylie,  not  Willie.  It  was  in  honor  of  Allan 
Jones  that  he  adopted  the  name  of  Jones  as  surname  to 
that  of  Paul.  .  .  . 

E. 

In  a  subsequent  letter  from  Mr.  Jiinius  Davis,  Wil- 
mington, North  Carolina,  dated  April  24,  1900,  he  writes 
as  follows: 

"  In  respect  to  the  name  of  Jones,  I  never  heard  the 
question  raised  in  the  State  as  to  whether  Willie  or  Allan 
was  the  man,  who,  as  it  were,  picked  up  John  Paul  and 
was  his  closest  friend.  Beyond  all  question,  Hrillie 
was  the  man,  but  above  Willie  in  the  affection  of  John 
Paul  was  Mrs.  Willie  Jones.  Undoubtedly  it  was  his  affec- 
tion for  her  that  induced  him  to  change  his  name.  She 
was  a  Miss  Montford,  daughter  of  Colonel  Joseph  Mont- 
ford,  and  had  a  sister  who  married  Colonel  John  Baptiste 
Ashe,  a  distinguished  soldier  of  this  State,  during  the  war 
of  the  Revolution.  In  regard  to  the  retort  made  by  Mrs. 


APPENDIX   II.  465 

Willie  Jones  to  Tarleton,  you  will  find  it  mentioned  in 
Mrs.  Elliot's  Women  of  the  Revolution.  It  is  also  men- 
tioned by  Wheeler  in  vol.  ii,  page  186,  of  his  History  of 
North  Carolina.  It  is  a  little  singular  that  Mrs.  Ashe, 
sister  of  Mrs.  Willie  Jones,  also  retorted  upon  Tarleton. 
On  one  occasion,  when  he  said  with  a  sneer  that  he  would 
like  to  meet  Colonel  Washington,  she  replied,  '  If  you  had 
looked  behind  you  at  the  battle  of  Cowpens  you  would 
have  had  that  pleasure.'  These  two  ladies  were  both  very 
beautiful  women,  highly  gifted  in  mind  and  character,  and 
highly  educated." 

F. 

On    this    subject    see    also    Appletons'    Cyclopaedia   of 
American  Biography,  vol.  iii,  under  Jones. 


APPENDIX   II. 

CONCORDAT  MADE  BETWEEN  CAPTAIN  JOHN 
PAUL  JONES  AND  THE  OFFICERS  OF  THE 
SQUADRON. 

"  Agreement  between  Messieurs  John  Paul  Jones,  cap- 
tain of  the  Bon  Homme  Richard;  Pierre  Landais,  cap- 
tain of  the  Alliance;  Dennis  Nicholas  Cottineau,  captain 
of  the  Pallas;  Joseph  Varage,  captain  of  the  Stag;  and 
Philip  Nicholas  Ricot,  captain  of  the  Vengeance;  com- 
posing a  squadron  that  shall  be  commanded  by  the  oldest 
officer  of  the  highest  grade,  and  so  in  succession  in  case 
of  death  or  retreat.  None  of  the  said  commanders,  while 
they  are  not  separated  from  the  said  squadron,  by  order 
of  the  minister  shall  act  but  by  virtue  of  the  brevet,  which 
they  shall  have  obtained  from  the  United  States  of  Amer- 
ica, and  it  is  agreed  that  the  flag  of  the  United  States  shall 
be  displayed. 

"  The  division  of  the  prizes  to  the  superior  officers  and 
crews  of  said  squadron,  shall  be  made  agreeable  to  the 


466  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

American  laws;  but  it  is  agreed  that  the  proportion  of 
the  whole  coming  to  each  vessel  in  the  squadron  shall  be 
regulated  by  the  Minister  of  the  Marine  Department  of 
France,  and  the  Minister  Plenipotentiary  of  the  United 
States  of  America. 

"  A  copy  of  the  American  laws  shall  be  annexed  to  the 
present  agreement,  after  having  been  certified  by  the  com- 
mander of  the  Bon  Homme  Richard;  but,  as  the  said  laws 
can  not  foresee  or  determine  as  to  what  may  concern 
the  vessels  and  subjects  of  other  nations,  it  is  express- 
ly agreed  that  whatever  may  be  contrary  to  them  should 
be  regulated  by  the  Minister  of  the  French  Marine,  and 
the  Minister  Plenipotentiary  of  the  United  States  of 
America. 

"  It  is  likewise  agreed  that  the  orders  given  by  the 
Minister  of  the  French  Marine,  and  the  Minister  Pleni- 
potentiary of  the  United  States  be  executed. 

"  Considering  the  necessity  there  is  of  preserving  the 
interests  of  each  individual,  the  prizes  that  shall  be  taken 
shall  be  remitted  to  the  orders  of  Monsieur  le  Ray  de 
Chaumont,  honorary  intendant  of  the  Royal  Hotel  of  In- 
valids, who  has  furnished  the  expenses  of  the  armament 
of  the  said  squadron. 

"  It  has  been  agreed  that  M.  le  Ray  de  Chaumont  be  re- 
quested not  to  give  up  the  part  of  the  prizes  coming  to 
all  crews,  and  to  each  individual  of  the  said  squadron,  but 
to  their  order,  and  to  be  responsible  for  the  same  in  his 
own  and  proper  name. 

"  Whereas  the  said  squadron  has  been  formed  for  the 
purpose  of  injuring  the  common  enemies  of  France  and 
America,  it  has  been  agreed  that  such  armed  vessels, 
whether  French  or  American,  may  be  associated  therewith 
by  common  consent,  as  shall  be  found  suitable  for  the 
purpose,  and  that  they  shall  have  such  proportion  of  the 
prizes  which  shall  be  taken  as  the  laws  of  their  respec- 
tive countries  allow  them. 

"  In  case  of  the  death  of  any  of  the  before-mentioned 
commanders  of  vessels,  he  shall  be  replaced  agreeably  to 
the  order  of  the  tariff,  with  liberty,  however,  for  the  suc- 
cessor to  choose  whether  he  shall  remain  on  board  his  own 
vessel,  and  give  up  the  next  in  order,  the  command  of  the 
vacant  ship. 

"  It  has,  moreover,  been  agreed,  that  the  commander  of 
the  Stag  shall  be  excepted  from  the  last  article  of  this 


APPENDIX   III.  467 

present  agreement,  because  in  case  of  a  disaster  to  M.  de 
Varage  he  shall  be  replaced  by  his  second  in  command, 
and  so  on  by  the  other  officers  of  his  cutter,  the  Stag. 

"  J.  PAUL  JONES. 

"  P.  LANDAIS. 

"  DE  GOTTINEAU. 

"  DE  VARAGE. 

"  LE  RAY  DE  CHAUMONT. 

"  P.  RICOT." 


APPENDIX   III. 

ON    THE    FLAG   OF   THE    BON    HOMME    RICHARD. 

The  statement  is  frequently  made  that  the  flag  under 
which  the  Bon  Homme  Richard  fought  the  Serapis  is  still 
in  existence,  and  the  following  letter  from  the  assistant 
secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution  gives  a  history 
of  the  claim: 

"  I  am  authorized  by  the  secretary  to  acknowledge  the 
receipt  of  and  reply  to  your  letter  of  the  27th  instant,  in 
which  you  ask  whether  the  identical  flag  used  by  John 
Paul  Jones  on  the  Bon  Homme  Richard  is  the  one  now  in 
the  custody  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution. 

"  Your  letter  has  been  referred  to  Mr.  A.  H.  Clark, 
Custodian  of  the  Section  of  American  History  in  the 
National  Museum,  who  has  submitted  the  following  facts, 
which  I  submit  to  you  as  the  opinion  of  this  institution  in 
the  case. 

"  '  The  evidence  appears  conclusive  that  the  flag  in  the 
National  Museum  is  the  identical  one  used  by  John  Paul 
Jones  on  the  Bon  Homme  Richard.  This  flag  was  pre- 
sented to  James  Bayard  Stafford  in  1784,  by  the  Marine 
Committee,  with  the  following  letter.  The  sword  and 
musket  are  exhibited  with  the  flag  together  with  the  ori- 
ginal letter: 


468  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

"  '  "  PHILADELPHIA,  Monday,  December  13,  1784. 

"  James  Bayard  Stafford. 

"  SIR:  I  am  directed  by  the  Marine  Committee  to 
inform  you  that  on  last  Thursday,  the  gth,  they  decided 
to  bestow  upon  you,  for  your  meritorious  service  thro' 
the  late  war,  Paul  Jones'  Starry  Flag  of  the  Bon  Homme 
Richard — which  was  transferred  to  the  Alliance — a  board- 
ing sword  of  said  ship,  and  a  musquet  captured  from  the 
Serapis. 

"  '  "  If  you  write  to  Captain  John  Brown,  at  the  Yard, 
what  ship  you  wish  them  sent  by  to  New  York,  they  will 
be  forwarded  to  you. 

"  '  "  Your  humble  servant, 
"  '  "  JAMES  MEYLER, 

"  '  "  Secretary,  pro  tern." 

"  '  In  the  United  States  Senate,  May  i,  1872,  the  Com- 
mittee on  Revolutionary  Claims  favorably  reported  a  bill 
(S.  1060)  for  payment  to  Sarah  S.  Stafford,  for  the  serv- 
ices of  her  father,  James  Bayard  Stafford,  an  officer  of  the 
Revolution.  In  the  committee's  report,  Commodore  Barry, 
of  the  Alliance,  certified  to  the  service  of  Lieutenant  Staf- 
ford, and  the  report  further  states  that  "  it  fully  appears 
from  the  testimony  before  the  committee  that  James  Bay- 
ard Stafford  entered  the  navy  at  the  beginning  of  the 
War  of  Independence,  and  was  in  constant  and  active 
service,  and  in  frequent  battles,  and  remained  in  the  serv- 
ice until  the  close  of  the  war;  that  his  ship  was  captured 
by  a  British  cruiser,  and  subsequently  recaptured  by  John 
Paul  Jones,  when  he  volunteered  on  the  Bon  Homme 
Richard,  where  he  received  wounds,  which,  owing  to  un- 
skillful treatment,  broke  out  after  a  time,  disabling  both  his 
arms." 

(Signed.)  "  '  A.  H.   CLARK, 

"  '  Custodian,   Section   of  American   History, 
United  States  National  Museum.' 

"  Yours  very  respectfully, 
(Signed.)  "  RICHARD  RATHBUN, 

"  Assistant  Secretary." 

This  is  an  opinion  with  which  I  must  disagree. 
Stafford,  it  is  claimed,  had  been  a  sailor  in  the  American 
armed  ship  Kitty,  which  had  been  captured  by  a  British 
cruiser,  said  cruiser  and  her  prize  being  subsequently 


APPENDIX   III. 


469 


taken  by  the  Richard,  whereupon  Stafford  volunteered  for 
service  on  the  Richard,  was  warranted  a  midshipman,  and 
is  alleged  to  have  performed  several  heroic  deeds  in  con- 
nection with  the  flag  during  the  action.*  There  is  no 
authority  whatever  for  any  of  these  statements  in  any 
existing  contemporary  account  of  the  battle,  yet  the  oc- 
currence was  sufficiently  important  to  be  mentioned  some- 
where, surely,  if  it  had  occurred.  Stafford's  name  does  not 
appear  in  any  of  the  lists  of  the  officers  and  crew,  and  the 
Richard  certainly  did  not  capture  any  British  cruiser  and 
her  prize.  But  we  have  evidence  which  is  more  than 
negative,  for  Jones  explicitly  states  that  when  the  Richard 
went  down,  a  flag — presumably  that  which  had  been  shot 
from  the  staff,  or  had  fallen  with  it,  during  the  action, 
and  had  been  recovered  the  next  day — was  left  flying  at 
the  peak.  In  subsequent  letters,  though,  he  takes  oc- 
casion to  refer  specifically  to  the  fact  that  he  sailed 
under  American  colors  in  the  Alliance — he  calls  them 
"  my  very  best  American  colors,"  a  phrase  certainly  in- 
appropriate for  the  battle-torn  ensign  of  the  Richard — 
he  never  makes  the  slightest  reference  to  their  having  been 
used  in  the  famous  battle.  Again,  the  Alliance  sailed  finally 
under  the  command  of  Landais,  and  no  mention  of  any 
particular  flag  appears  thereafter.  It  may  be  possible, 
however,  though  doubtful,  that  the  flag  which  was  given 
to  Stafford  was  the  "  best  American  colors  "  under  which 
Jones  sailed  from  the  Texel,  and,  if  so,  it  is  an  interesting 
relic.  The  last  circumstance  that  militates  against  the 
claim  is  the  size  of  the  flag  in  question.  It  is  so  small  that 
it  is  highly  improbable  it  was  ever  used  for  a  battle  flag! 

*  See  Preble's  History  of  the  American  Flag,  where  the 
story  of  Stafford  is  given  in  extenso. 


47O  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 


APPENDIX   IV. 

SONG  AND   MUSIC. 

"  Here  comes  brave  Paul  Jones,  Oho! 
He's  a  jolly  good  fellow. 
His  ship  has  sunk  'neath  the  sea, 
On  a  bold  English  cape,  O. 

"  Here  comes  brave  Paul  Jones,  Oho! 
He's  a  jolly  good  fellow. 
Born  an  American  true, 
And  English  not  a  bit,  O. 

"  Here  comes  brave  Paul  Jones,  Oho! 
He's  a  jolly  good  fellow. 
He  does  so  many  brave  deeds 
For  the  good  of  his  friends,  O. 

CHORUS. 

"  Oh,  had  we  him  here, 
Or  had  they  him  there, 
He'd  well  know  what  to  try  for 
And  luck  he'd  let  go  by,  sir!  " 


HIER  KOMT  PAUL  JONES  AAN. 


Niet  te  snel. 


^jj  |-  -_v—  —  s~  —  ^ 

—  =f"3- 

-J 

^a 

{Qd*-L--f*  —  •  •  »  m  * 

1.  Hicr  konit  Pau-wel    Jo  -  nes 
2.  llier  komt  Pau-wel    Jo-  7ies 
3.  Hier  komt  Pau-wel    Jo  -  lies 

-L  »-  —  ^  m  «_ 

aan,    't  Is  zoo'n  aar  -  din 
aan,     't  Is   /.(iii'n  aar  -  dig 
aan,    't  Is  zoo'u  aar  -  dig 

vent  - 
vent  - 
vent  - 

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• 

Je 

•!" 
» 

-II 

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2  *  ? 

x      *r  ^    5 

f 

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^U 

~n 

:b  :jr  

:  —  1-\  

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=U 

P2 


i 


Ziju  scliip  is  na  de  grond  j*e  -  gaan,  Ob  ecu  Enijelscli  ent  -  je  ! 
Een  pe  -  bo  -  ren  A  -  nio  -  ri-l<aan.  (Jantscli  «ren  En<:e]»cli  vent-je! 
Het  doet  zoo  vee  -  le  liel  -  den-diicn  Tot  wclstant  van  ziju  vrint-je! 


Had  -  den      wij       horn      liit-r, 

Had  -  den      zij      hem    daar,         liij 

-i  —      i   =q  —  i=  ^ 

^     *  -  ^ 

:F     «=     r"^" 



3 

')  Het  scbip  van  don  Amorikaanscben  knperk«pitein  P.M'L  JOXF.S  was  in  Oct. 
1779  in  een  strijd  met  de  Enjielsclien  bij  k;in]>  Lanilscnd  (Kn<relscli  eutjf)  L:C- 
zonktMi.  Hij  heesch  toen  zijne  vlag  nan  booru  vuu  het  veroverdc  scbip  tie  apis 
eu  liep'met  ziju  suialdecl  Texel  binueu. 

471 


472  COMMODORE   PAUL   JONES. 


APPENDIX   V. 


"  Testament  of  Paul  Jones,  July  /<?,  1792. 

"  Before  the  undersigned  notaries,  at  Paris,  appeared 
Mr.  John  Paul  Jones,  citizen  of  the  United  States  of 
America,  resident  at  present  in  Paris,  lodged  in  the  street 
of  Tournon,  No.  42,  at  the  house  of  Mr.  Dorberque, 
huissier  audiancier  of  the  tribunal  of  the  third  arrondisse- 
ment,  found  in  a  parlour  in  the  first  story  above  the  door, 
lighted  by  two  windows  opening  on  the  said  street  of 
Tournon,  sitting  in  an  armchair,  sick  of  body,  but  sound 
of  mind,  memory,  and  understanding,  as  it  appeared  to  the 
undersigned  notaries,  by  his  discourse  and  conversation, — 

"  Who,  in  view  of  death,  has  made,  dictated,  and 
worded,  to  the  undersigned  notaries,  his  testament  as  fol- 
lows: 

"  I  give  and  bequeath  all  the  goods,  as  well  movable 
as  heritable,  and  all,  generally,  whatever  may  appertain  to 
me  at  my  decease,  in  whatever  country  they  may  be  situ- 
ated, to  my  two  sisters,  Janette,  spouse  to  William  Taylor, 
and  Mary,  wife  to  Mr.  Loudon,  and  to  the  children  of 
my  said  sisters,  to  divide  them  into  as  many  portions  as 
my  said  sisters  and  their  children  shall  make  up  indi- 
viduals, and  to  be  enjoyed  by  them  in  the  following 
manner: 

"  My  sisters,  and  those  of  their  children  who  on  the 
day  of  my  death  shall  have  reached  the  age  of  twenty- 
one,  will  enjoy  their  share  in  full  property  from  the  date 
of  my  decease.  As  for  those  of  my  nephews  and  nieces  who 
at  that  period  of  time  may  not  reach  the  age  of  twenty- 
one  years,  their  mothers  will  enjoy  their  shares  till  such 
time  as  they  attain  that  said  age,  with  charge  to  them  to 
provide  for  their  food,  maintenance,  and  education:  and 
as  soon  as  any  of  my  nephews  or  nieces  will  have  reached 
the  age  of  twenty-one  years,  the  same  will  enjoy  his  share 
in  full  property. 

"  If  one  or  more  of  my  nephews  and  nieces  should 
happen  to  die  without  children  before  having  reached  the 
age  of  twenty-one,  the  share  of  those  of  them  who  may 
have  deceased  shall  be  divided  betwixt  my  said  sisters  and 
my  other  nephews  and  nieces  by  equal  portions, 


APPENDIX   V. 


473 


"  I  name  the  Honourable  Robert  Morris,  Esq.,  of 
Philadelphia,  my  only  testamentary  executor. 

"  I  revoke  all  other  testaments  or  codicils  which  I  may 
have  made  before  the' present,  which  alone  I  stand  by  as 
containing  my  last  will. 

"  So  made,  dictated,  and  worded,  by  said  testator,  to 
the  said  notaries  undersigned,  and  afterward  read,  and 
read  over  again  to  him  by  one  of  them,  the  others  being 
present,  which  he  well  understood,  and  persevered  in,  at 
Paris,  the  year  1792,  the  i8th  July,  about  five  o'clock, 
afternoon,  in  the  room  heretofore  described,  and  the  said 
testator  signed  the  original  of  the  present,  unregistrated, 
at  Paris,  the  25th  of  September,  1792,  by  Defrance,  who 
received  one  livre,  provisionally,  save  to  determine  defin- 
itively the  right  after  the  declaration  of  the  revenue  of 
the  testator.  The  original  remained  with  Mr.  Pottier,  one 
of  the  notaries  at  Paris,  undersigned,  who  delivered  these 
presents  this  day,  26th  September,  1792,  first  of  the  French 
Republic. 

(Signed.)  "  POTTIER. 

"  L'AVERNIER." 


(COPY.) 

"  Schedule  of  the  Property  of  Admiral  John  Paul  Jones, 
as  stated  by  him  to  me,  this  i8th  of  July, 


"  I.  Bank  stock  in  the  Bank  of  North  America,  at 
Philadelphia,  six  thousand  dollars,  with  sundry  dividends. 

"  2.  Loan-Office  certificate  left  with  my  friend  Mr. 
Ross,  of  Philadelphia,  for  two  thousand  dollars,  at  par, 
with  great  arrearages  of  interest,  being  for  ten  or  twelve 
years. 

"  3.  Such  balance  as  may  be  in  the  hands  of  my  said 
friend  John  Ross,  belonging  to  me,  and  sundry  effects 
left  in  his  care. 

"  4.  My  lands  in  the  State  of  Vermont. 

"  5.  Shares   in   the   Ohio   Company. 

"6.  Shares  in  the  Indiana  Company. 

"  7.  About  eighteen  thousand  pounds  sterling  due  to 
me  from  Edward  Bancroft,  unless  paid  by  him  to  Sir 
Robert  Herries,  and  is  then  in  his  hands. 

"  8.  Upward  of  four  years  of  my  pension  due  from 
Denmark,  to  be  asked  from  the  Count  de  Bernstorf, 


474  COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 

"  9.  Arrearages  of  my  pay  from  the  Empress  of  Rus- 
sia, and  all  my  prize  money. 

"  10.  The  balance  due  to  me  by  the  United  States  of 
America,  of  sundry  claims  in  Europe,  which  will  appear 
from  my  papers. 

"  This  is  taken  from  his  mouth. 

"  GOUVERNEUR    MORRIS." 

This  property  was  estimated  as  being  worth  about 
thirty  thousand  dollars  at  the  date  of  Jones'  death. 


APPENDIX    VI. 

RANGER,  NANTES  \\th  Dec.  1777. 

"HONORED  SIR  : — I  think  it  my  duty  to  give  you  some 
account  of  my  Passage  from  Portsmouth  to  this  place, 
as  this  may  perhaps  find  you  at  home  in  the  Bosom  of 
domestic  happiness.  I  had  passed  the  Western  Islands 
before  a  Sail  appeared  within  our  Horizon  from  the  Mast 
head;  but  this  Halcyon  Season  was  then  interrupted,  and 
changed  into  continued  alarms  Night  and  day  till  the 
Ranger  cast  Anchor  here  the  2d  Current,  this  afforded 
me  excellent  opportunities  of  exercising  the  Officers 
and  Men  especially  in  the  Night,  and  it  is  with  much 
Pleasure  that  I  assure  you  their  behaviour  was  to  my 
entire  Satisfaction.  I  fell  in  with  an  Enemies  Fleet  of 
Ten  Sail  off  Ushant,  bound  up  Channel,  but  notwith- 
standing my  best  endeavours^  I  was  unable  to  detach  any 
of  them  from  the  strong  Convoy  under  which  they  sailed. 
I  fell  in  with  and  brought  too  a  number  of  other  Ships 
and  Vessels  none  whereof  proved  to  be  British  Property 
except  two  Brigantines  with  fruit  from  Malaga  for  Lon- 
don which  became  Prizes,  the  one  is  arrived  here,  the 
other  I  am  told  in  Quiberon  Bay.  The  Rangers  sailing 
does  not  answer  the  general  expectation,  o  \veing  in  a  great 
measure  to  her  being  too  deep,  very  foul  and  over  Masted, 
her  Ballast  laid  too  high,  on  account  of  its  improper  qual- 
ity, for  a  Ship  of  this  construction,  this  with  the  extraordi- 


APPENDIX   VI. 


475 


nary  weight  of  her  lower  Masts;  occasioned  her  being 
very  Crank,  I  am  paying  my  whole  Attention  to  remedy 
these  inconveniences  as  much  as  Possible,  I  am  short- 
ening the  lower  Masts,  shifting  the  Main  Mast  further 
aft,  and  mean  to  ballast  with  Lead;  as  that  Article  will 
store  under  the  lower  tier  of  Water  the  less  quantity  will 
be  sufficient,  of  course  the  Ship  will  be  so  much  the 
lighter,  and  Sail  so  much  the  faster,  and  we  shall  then,  I 
hope,  be  able  to  store  the  Cables  under  the  Platform. 
Tho'  I  have  yet  received  no  Letter  from  the  Commis- 
sioners, I  understand  that  they  had  some  time  ago  pro- 
vided for  me  one  of  the  Finest  Frigates  that  can  be  im- 
agined, calculated  for  Thirty  two,  Twenty  four  Pounders, 
on  One  deck,  and  longer  than  any  Ship  in  the  Enemies 
Fleet,  but  it  seems  they  were  unfortunately  under  the 
necessity  of  giving  her  up  on  Account  of  some  difficulties 
which  they  met  with  at  Court,  however  I  esteem  the  in- 
tention as  much  as  tho'  it  had  succeeded,  as  I  shall 
always  cherish  the  grateful  remembrance  of  the  Honor 
which  Congress  hath  conferred  on  me  by  this  and  every 
other  instance  of  their  generous  Approbation,  I  shall  be 
the  happiest  of  Men  if  a  Life  of  services  devoted  to  the 
Intrests  of  America  can  be  rendered  instrumental  in  se- 
curing its  Independance. 

"  My  particular  thanks  are  due  to  you  Sir,  as  one  of  the 
four  Members  of  that  Honorable  Committee  to  whose 
generous  intention,  and  Approbation  I  more  immediately 
owe  this  great  and  unsolicited  Obligation,  but  I  hope  for 
Opportunities  of  proving  by  my  Conduct  the  deep  sense 
I  entertain  of  that  favor. 

"  The  inclosed  letter,  and  its  consequences  hath  given 
me  real  concern.  Malice  is  a  stranger  to  my  Nature.  I 
hate  domestic  broils,  or  misunderstandings,  and  would 
do,  or  suffer  much,  as  a  private  Person  to  prevent  them. 
But  as  an  Officer,  honored  with  the  Approbation  of  Con- 
gress, and  conscious  of  having  at  no  time  exceeded  even 
in  Thought  the  delicate  lines  of  my  duty,  or  express  letter 
of  my  Orders;  I  am  in  the  highest  degree  tenacious  of 
the  respect  due  to  my  Signature;  and  I  bid  the  most 
contemptuous  defiance  to  the  insinuation  of  any  Man  out 
of  Congress. 

"  I  have  been  informed  in  Portsmouth  that  the  four 
Oared  Boat  which  attended  the  Ranger  was  built  for  the 
Portsmouth  Privateer,  and  after  being  rejected  as  mis- 


476  COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 

constructed  and  unuseful  for  that  Ship,  was  assigned  over 
to  the  Ranger,  be  this  as  it  may,  I  will  boldly  affirm  that 
she  was  the  worst  constructed  and  most  unservicable 
Boat  that  I  ever  saw,  belonging  to  a  Ship  of  War,  for 
tho'  a  Man  stepping  on  her  Gunnel,  would  bring  it  down 
to  the  Waters  edge,  yet  was  her  Weight  equal,  or  nearly 
so  to  that  of  the  Cutter,  which  I  planned,  and  had  built, 
capable  of  carrying  40  Armed  Men,  had  I  been  able,  which 
I  was  not,  to  stow  the  two  Boats,  which  I  found  provided 
for  the  Ranger,  I  must  have  been  reduced  to  the  Alterna- 
tives of  throwing  them  overboard,  or  strikeing  the  Top 
Masts  several  times,  on  the  Passage  to  prevent  oversetting 
the  Ship.  I  mention  this  matter  to  you  in  confidence  as  a 
Friend,  declaring  on  the  Honor  of  a  Gentleman  that  I 
wish  on  my  part  to  give  it  to  Oblivion.  I  have  the 
Pleasure  to  hear  that  Captains  Thompson  and  Hinman 
are  well  at  Lorient  of  which  please  to  inform  Mrs. 
Thompson.  I  shall  endeavour  to  procure  the  Articles 
mentioned  in  Mrs.  Whipple's  Memorandum,  I  hope  to 
live  in  the  remembrance  of  the  few  acquaintances  I  have 
in  Portsmouth,  and  I  have  the  honor  to  be  with  due  Re- 
spect. 

"Sir 

"  Your  very  Obliged 

"  very  Obedient 

"  most  humble  Servant, 

"  JNO  P  JONES"  * 
THE  HON'BLE 

GEN'L  WHII-PLE 

*  The  above  hitherto  unpublished  letter,  with  its  unusual 
signature,  was  addressed  to  William  Whipple,  one  of  the 
signers  of  the  Declaration  of  Independence  from  New  Hamp- 
shire, who  in  1777  was  a  member  of  the  Continental  Congress, 
and  one  of  the  four  Navy  Commissioners.  The  original  of 
the  Commodore's  interesting  letter  is  in  the  collection  of  Mr. 
Ferdinand  J.  Dreer,  of  Philadelphia. — EDITOR. 


INDEX. 


Adams,  John,  19,  310,  432. 

Alexiano,  General,  363,  371, 376, 
377,  33o.  382. 

Alfred,  King,  the  Great,  21. 

Arnold,  Benedict,  62. 

Arnold,  Rhodes,  20. 

Ashe,  Colonel  John  Baptiste, 
464. 

Ashe,  Mrs.  Colonel  John  Bap- 
tiste, 464 ;  her  clever  retort 
upon  Tarleton,  465. 

Bahama  project,  26,  27. 

Barry,  Commodore  John,  21, 
270,  423,  443,  468. 

Battle  between  the  Ariel  and 
the  Triumph,  301,  302  ;  be- 
tween the  Serapis  and  the 
Richard,  175,  208 ;  remarks 
on  the  action,  220,  228  ;  be- 
tween the  Solebay  and  the 
Providence,  44-46  ;  of  Nas- 
sau, 31,  32  ;  with  the  Glas- 
gow, 33-35  ;  with  the  Turks, 

363.  389- 

Besborodko,  Count,  403,  404. 
Biddle,  Nicholas,  20,  23,  60. 
Blnckden,  Colonel,  419. 
Brown,  Captain  John,  468. 
Brown,  Governor,  31,  32. 
Burden,  Captain,  106. 
Burgoyne,  General,  So,  306. 
Burns,  Robert,  4. 
Burroughs,  Ezekiel,  20. 

Carleton,  Sir  Guy,  54. 

Carmichael,  William,  85. 
Caswell,  Midshipman,  205. 


Catherine,  Empress  of  Russia, 
her  birth,  character,  etc.,  352- 
356. 

Cerf,  161. 

Clark,  A.  H.,  468. 

Columbus,  Christopher,  28. 

Commissioning  the  first  Amer- 
ican fleet,  23-25. 

Concordat  between  John  Paul 
Jones  and  officers  of  the 
squadron,  156,  157,  465,  467. 

Conflans,  M.,  84,  147. 

Cook,  Captain,  322. 

Corsacoff,  Brigadier,  372. 

Countess  of  Scarborough,  178, 
200,  244. 

Cruise  of  the  Alfred,  51,  57  ;  of 
the  Ariel,  291,  303 ;  of  the 
Providence,  38-49;  of  the 
Ranger,  77,  90  ;  of  the  squad- 
ron, 156-174. 

Cunningham,  Captain  Gustavus, 
79.  243- 

Dale,    Richard,    152,   155,   180, 

188,  196,  198,  200,  202,  203  ; 

bravery     of.    211-221,    423  ; 

lifelong    friendship   for    Paul 

Jones,  432,  433. 

D'Artois,  Count  (Charles  X),  333. 
Deane,  Silas,  82. 
De  Castries,  Mare'chal,  319. 
De    Chamillard     de    Warville, 

Lieutenant-colonel,  153. 
De  Chaumont,  Monsieur  )e  Ray, 

144,  145,  156,  157,  467. 
De  Cottineau,  162,  172,  467. 
Degges,  Lieutenant,  284. 
De  Kersaint,  147. 

477 


478 


COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 


De  la  Vauguyon,  Due,  247. 
De   Lavendahl,  Countess,  424, 
425- 

Delia ,  276,  331,  332,  430. 

De  Luxembourg,  Chevalier,  313, 

314. 

De  Marsan,  Marquise,  331. 
De  Rochambeau,  309. 
De  Sartine,  M.,  128,  144,  153. 
De  Segur,  392,  404  ;  narrative 

of,     concerning     slander     of 

Paul  Jones,  396-399. 
D'Estaing,  Admiral,  82,  83,  433. 
De  Varage,  467. 
De  Vauban,  Count,  291. 
De  Vaudreuil,  Marquis,  312. 
De  Viomenil,  Baron,  433. 
De  Weibert,  196,  201. 
Dewey,  Admiral  George,  I. 
Dobbs,  Lieutenant,  108. 
"  Don't  tread  on  me,"  24. 
D'Ormoy,  Madame,  297. 
D'Orvilliers,  Comte,  88. 
Drake,  capture  of  the,  93,  107. 
Dumas,  256. 
Dunmore,  Lord,  20,  26. 

Edes,  Miss,  276,  277. 

Empress  Catherine  of  Russia, 
334.  .3  5  2-3  56. 

Expedition  to  New  Providence, 
25-37  I  against  the  Turks, 
359-389;  to  Whitehaven,  91- 


Fabricien,  379. 

Fanning,  John,  20. 

Fanning,  Midshipman  Nathan- 
iel, 207,  225,  226. 

Farragut,  Admiral,  I. 

Fishing  industry,  breaking  up 
of  the,  47,  450. 

Flag  of  the  Bon  Homme  Ri- 
chard, 467,  469. 

Flag,  American,  saluted  at  sea 
for  the  first  time,  85-88. 

Fort  Hassan,  378-380. 

Fort  Mellish,  capture  of.  54,  56  ; 
Montague,  capture  of,  29,  31, 
32 ;  Nassau,  capture  of,  31,  32. 


Fox,  Lieutenant,  379. 
Franklin,  Benjamin,    112,    113, 

117,  145,  230. 
Frederick  the  Great,  2. 
Freeman,  David,  97,  98. 

Gates,  General,  306. 

Genet,  M.,  Secretary  of  the 
French  Legation  at  St.  Pe- 
tersburg, 406. 

George  I,  2. 

Gillon,  Captain,  313,  314. 

Glasgow,  the,  33,  35,  36. 

Greene,  General,  306. 

Grimm,  Baron,  433. 

Hacker,   Captain   Hoysted,  20, 

53.  55- 

Hall,  Lieutenant  Elijah,  99, 108. 
Hancock,  President,  68. 
Hawke,  Lord,  84,  147. 
Hewes,  Joseph,  of  Edenton,  14, 

19,  460. 

Hierkomt  Paul  Jones  aan  (song), 

471. 

Hinman,  Captain,  64,  67. 

Hopkins,  Captain  John  Bur- 
roughs (son  of  Commodore 
Esek  Hopkins),  20,  34. 

Hopkins,  Commodore  Esek,  19, 

20,  22,  23,  26,  27,  29,  30,  32, 
33.  35.  39-  4i,  53,  62,  66. 

Hopkins,  Stephen,  19. 

Howe,  Captain  Tyringham,  34, 

35- 

Howe,  Lord,  82,  83. 
Huntington,  Samuel,  278. 

"  I  have  not  yet  begun  to  fight " 
194. 

Incidents  in  Paul  Jones'  West- 
Tndian  service,  9, 10 ;  amusing 
encounter  between  the  Mil- 
ford  and  the  Providence,  47, 
48  ;  the  Richard  is  mistaken 
for  an  English  ship  and  asked 
for  powder  and  shot,  168  ; 
prayer  of  the  minister  of 
Kirkaldy  when  the  Richard 
neared  the  town,  170 ;  in- 
sulted by  Landais,  329,  330. 


INDEX. 


479 


Jay,  John,  325,  327. 

Jefferson,  Thomas,  321,  322, 
323,  328,  334,  432. 

Johnstone,  Captain,  79. 

Jones,  Allan,  n,  12,  13,  460, 
462,  465. 

Jones,  Colonel  Cadwallader, 
460  ;  MS.  of,  concerning  John 
Paul  Jones,  460,  463. 

Jones,  Mrs.  \\illie,  11-13,  460- 
464 ;  her  famous  retort  to 
Tarleton's  sneer,  12,  463. 

Jones,  Paul,  Commodore  ;  an- 
cestry and  birth,  1-7  ;  goes  to 
sea  on  the  Friendship,  6;  third 
mate  on  slaver  King  George, 
7 ;  abandons  slave  trading, 
78  ;  captain  and  merchant  at 
twenty-one,  9  ;  flogging  of 
Mungo  Maxwell,  10 ;  comes 
to  America,  11-13;  assumes 
the  name  of  Jones,  11-13, 
15,459-456;  appointed  lieu- 
tenant in  Continental  navy,  j 
15-19,  460  ;  his  part  in  taking 
Fort  Nassau,  29-31  ;  encoun-  j 
ter  with  the  Cerberus  and  a 
colonial  brigantine,  41  ;  com- 
missioned captain,  41  ;  en- 
gagement between  the  Provi- 
dence and  the  Solebay,  44-46 ; 
fishing  industry  broken  up, 
47-50;  capture  of  the  Mel- 
lish  and  of  the  coal  fleet, 
54-56  ;  suggests  naval  regula- 
tions, 69,  72 ;  appointed  to 
the  sloop  of  war  Ranger,  75  ; 
first  to  hoist  the  new  flag 
of  the  Republic,  76 ;  first 
cruise  of  the  Ranger,  77-81  ; 
first  salute  to  the  American 
flag  by  France,  85-88  ;  ordered 
to  attack  the  English  coast, 
90  ;  second  cruise  of  the  Ran- 
ger, 91-115;  capture  of  the 
Drake,  93,  107;  the  descent 
on  Whitehaven,  95,  98  ;  the 
attempt  on  Lord  Selkirk,  99- 
115;  returns  silver  to  Lady 
Selkirk,  113;  goes  to  Ver- 


sailles to  consult  with  com- 
missioner, 127,  128;  is  given 
the  Bon  Homme  Richard,  144 ; 
armament  of  the  Richard,  147, 
148  ;  instructed  to  proceed  to 
the  Texel,  150,  151  ;  the  con- 
cordat, 156,  157,  465,  467; 
joined  by  Richard  Dale,  152  ; 
insubordination  and  insolence 
of  Landais,  162-165,  172, 173, 
176  ;  crew  of  the  Richard, 
i  S3-1 55 1  the  Richard  is  chal- 
lenged by  the  Serapis— the 
battle,  178-227  ;  /  have  not 
yet  begun  to  fight,  194  ;  lashes 
the  two  ships  together,  197  ; 
treachery  of  Landais,  200, 

205,  206  ;  both  ships  on  fire, 

206,  207 ;  Pearson  surrenders, 
208 ;    after   the   battle,    209 ; 
meeting  of  Paul   Jones   and 
Pearson,    211;    the    Richard 
on  fire,  215  ;   sinking  of  the 
Richard,  215-218;  ordered  to 
leave  the  Texel,  233 ;  offered 
French  naval  letter  of  marque, 
247 ;  honors  and  rewards,  269, 
274,  275,  305,  323  ;  his  rela- 
tions with  Madame  de  Telison 
(Delia),   276,  331,  332,  430  ; 
Louis  XVI  presents  him  with 
a  sword,  274,  278.  279,  291 ; 
sails  on  the  Ariel  for  America, 
291,  303  ;  receives  the  cross  of 
the  Order  of  Military  Merit, 
305  ;  encounter  with  the  Tri- 
umph,301, 302;  commander  of 
the  America,  308 ;  a  volunteer 
on  Admiral  deVaudreuiPsflag- 
ship  Triomphante,  315  ;  sent 
to    France   to    collect    prize 
money,  319;  returns  to  Amer- 
ica, 316  ;    Congress  presents 
him  with  a  gold  medal,  324, 
325  ;     goes    to    the     Danish 
court  to  prosecute  the  Amer- 
ican claim,  327,  335 ;    enters 
the  service  of  Russia,  351 ;  is 
presented   to  Empress  Cath- 
erine, 346;  expedition  against 


480 


COMMODORE   PAUL  JONES. 


the  Turks,  359-389  ;  unjustly 
treated  by  Patiomkine,  favor- 
ite of  Catherine  -of  Russia, 
377-388,  396;  slandered  in 
Russia,  390-395;  is  befriend- 
ed by  de  Segur,  392,  396- 
399,  404,  406;  received  again 
at  court  of  Russia,  402  ;  dec- 
orated with  the  order  of  St. 
Anne,  406  ;  last  years,  407- 
420;  his  last  public  appear- 
ance, 412;  his  death — "rest 
at  last,"  420,  421  ;  defended 
against  the  charge  of  piracy, 
435.  436  !  his  last  will  and 
testament,  419,  472,  474  ; 
characteristics,  personal  ap- 
pearance,. 424,  426  ;  personal 
character  and  professional 
status,  426,  446  ;  qualities  as 
an  officer,  447-453 ;  as  a  com- 
mander, 453,  455. 
Jones,  Willie,  11-13,  459-465. 

Keppel,  Admiral  A.  I.,  130. 
King  Charles  X,  333. 
Kosciusko,  408,  433. 
Krudner,  340,  411,  433. 

Lafayette,  General,  142,  146, 
311,  418,  433,  434. 

Landais,  Captain,  176,  204,  205  ; 
insubordination  and  treachery 
of,  224,  225,  227,  229,  243  ; 
court-martialed,  290,  467. 

Langdon,  John,  75. 

Ledyard,  Captain,  322. 

Lee,  Arthur,  271-274,  281,  285. 

Lee,  Richard  Henry,  19. 

Letters  to  the  Marine  Board, 
62,  65  ;  to  Robert  Morris,  69- 
71  ;  to  a  friend  concerning  his 
mother,  72  ;  of  Marine  Com- 
mittee to  commissioners  of  the 
United  States  in  Europe,  73, 
74  ;  of  Marine  Committee  to 
John  Paul  Jones,  74,  75 ;  to 
the  Marine  Committee,  77, 
87,  88  ;  to  Lady  Selkirk,  109- 
112  ;  from  Lord  Selkirk,  113- 


115;  extract  of,  to  the  com- 
missioners on  his  arrival  in 
France,  119,  120  ;  private, 
from  Franklin,  125—127;  to 
M.  de  Sartine,  131,  154  ;  to 
the  King  of  France,  135- 
139  ;  from  John  Paul  Jones 
to  Baron  van  der  Capellen, 
235i  238,  239  ;  answer,  236- 
238  ;  from  John  Paul  Jones 
to  Due  de  la  Vauguyon,  247, 
25°>  253.  256;  from  Due  de 
la  Vauguyon  to  Paul,  253, 
254 ;  extract  of,  to  Robert 
Morris,  256 ;  to  Madame 
D'Ormoy,  297  ;  to  Madame 
Thellison,  332,  333  ;  from 
John  Adams,  310  ;  from  La- 
fayette, 311  ;  from  George 
Washington,  306,  307  ;  from 
John  Paul  to  Samuel  Hunt- 
ington,  278,  279  ;  answer,  279, 
280 ;  extract  of,  from  Frank- 
lin, regarding  the  Landais 
affair,  281-283  :  from  Con- 
gress to  Louis  XVI,  324,  325  ; 
from  John  Paul  Jones  to  John 
Jay,  Secretary  of  State,  325- 
327 ;  from  Pearson  to  John 
Paul  Jones,  240  ;  answer,  241, 
242  ;  to  King  of  France,  135- 
139  ;  to  Paul  Jones  from  Em- 
press of  Russia,  349  ;  extracts 
of,  that  passed  between  John 
Paul  Jones  and  Patiomkine, 
384-389,  393-395  ;  to  Em- 
press Catherine  from  Paul 
Jones,  400-402 ;  from  Paul 
Jones  to  Lafayette,  418  ;  to 
his  sister,  Mrs.  Taylor,  415- 
417;  correspondence  concern- 
ing John  Paul's  assumption 
of  the  name  of  Jones,  459-465. 

Liman  campaign,  369,  374,  389. 

Louis  XV,  2,  276. 

Louis  XVI,  274,  278,  279,  291, 
412. 

Lunt,  Lieutenant  Henry,  175, 
214,  215 

Luzerne,  M.,  314. 


INDEX. 


481 


MacDuff,  Jean,  mother  of  John 
Paul,  3. 

Mahan,  Captain  A.  T.,  224,  226, 
227. 

Maps  :  the  attack  on  New 
Providence  in  the  Bahamas, 
32  ;  showing  the  cruise  of  the 
first  American  squadron,  and 
of  the  Providence  and  the  Al- 
fred, 52  ;  showing  the  cruises 
of  the  Ranger  and  the  Bon 
Homme  Richard,  and  the 
dash  of  the  Alliance  from 
the  Texel,  160  ;  (diagram) 
showing  the  maneuvers  of 
Bon  Homme  Richard  and 
Serapis,  199  ;  of  the  Liman 
campaign,  374. 

Maria  Theresa,  2. 

Marine  Corps,  establishment  of, 
30. 

Marron,  M.f  422. 

Marsan,  Madame,  333. 

McDougall,  Lieutenant,  20. 

McKenzie,  Commodore,  160, 
161. 

Messrs.  Hortalez  &  Co.,  73. 

Meyler,  James,  468. 

Montgomery,  Richard,  443. 

Mordwinoff,  362. 

Morgan,  General,  62,  306. 

Morris,    Robert,    6),    71,    256, 

419.  423- 
Morris,  Gouverneur,  419,   432, 

474- 
Mount  Gallant,  home  of  Allan 

Jones,  460,  464. 
Mungo  Maxwell,  9,  10. 
Mutiny  of  Mungo  Maxwell,  9, 

10. 

Nassau,  battle  of,  3T,  32. 
Nassau-Siegen,     Prince     Otto, 

125,  126,  358,  359,  363,   364, 

366-368,    372-374,    377-330, 

383,  391,  408. 
Navy,  origin  of  first  American, 

16-24,  69. 

New  Providence,  island  of,  28. 
Nichols,  Captain,  31. 


Olney,  Joseph,  20. 
Otchakoff,  361,  389. 

Patiomkine,  Gregory  Alexandro- 
witch,  favorite  of  Empress 
Catherine  of  Russia,  355, 
358,  385,  3.86,  387,  388. 

Paul,  John,  father  of  John  Paul 
Jones,  3 ;  his  occupation, 
character,  birth  of  his  chil- 
dren, 2,  3. 

Paul,  William,  Jr.  (brother  of 
John  Paul),  3,  10,  461. 

Pearson,  Captain  Richard,  177, 
178,  182,  194,  195,  200,  202. 

Pindar,  Captain  John,  301. 

Piquet's,  La  Motte,  command, 
84,  86,  88. 

Pitcher,  Jonathan,  20. 

Plainer,  Captain  John,  72. 

Pompadour,  Madame  de,  2. 

Ranger,'  battle  between  the 
Drake  and  the,  101,  107. 

Ranger,  first  cruise  of  the,  7°~ 
80. 

Ranger,  second   cruise   of,  91- 

115- 

Rhynst,  Vice-Admiral,  246,  251. 

Richard,  battle  between  the 
Serapis  and,  175,  208  ;  re- 
marks on  the  action,  220,  228. 

Ricot,  Captain,  162,  467. 

Robertson,  Andrew,  168. 

Rochambea*u,  433. 

Rogers,  Woodes,  28. 

Saltonstall,  Captain  Dudley,  20, 

21,  24. 

Saunders,  Lieutenant,  56,  58,  59. 
Seabury,  Benjamin,  2O. 
Selkirk,  Earl  of,  2.  99,  115. 
Selkirk,    Lady,    99,     loo,    113, 

239- 

Serapis,  battle  between  the  Ri- 
chard and  the,  175,  208  ;  re- 
marks on  the  action,  220, 
228. 

Ship> :  Adventure,  49  ;  Alex- 
ander, 49 ;  Alfred,  21-23, 


4cS2 


COMMODORE    PAUL   JONES. 


29,  33-36,  51,    57  ;    Alliance, 

146,       148,       173,      222,       261, 

264,  267,  280,  284,  443, 
468,  469 ;  America,  308  ; 
Amphitrite,  75  ;  Arethusa, 
124  ;  Ariel,  142  ;  Andrea  Do- 
ria,  22,  34  ;  Belle  Poule,  124  ; 
Betsy  of  London,  10 ;  Black 
Prince,  21  ;  Bolton,  33  ;-Bon 
Homme  Richard  (see  the 
Richard) ;  brigantine  John, 
9  ;  Britannia,  43  ;  Cerf,  146  ; 
Cabot,  34,  66,  67  ;  Cerbe- 
rus, 41  ;  Columbus,  34,  66, 
67  ;  Countess  of  Scarborough, 
178,  200,  244 ;  Drake,  90- 
115;  Due  de  Broglio,  142; 
Duras(Bon  Homme  Richard), 
144,  145  ;  Ebenezer,  48,  49  ; 
Fly,  22,  27,  40  ;  Favorite,  43  ; 
Friendship,  6 ;  Flora,  55  ; 
Glasgow,  the,  33-36.;  Good 
Man  Richard  (the  Richard); 
Granville,  158  ;  Hampden, 
41,  42,  53,  66,  67  •  Hawk,  33, 
35  ;  Hornet,  22,  27  ;  Inde- 
pendence, 86  ;  Indicn  (South 
Carolina),  81,  125..  313;  In- 
vincible, 74,  80  ;  Katy  (Provi- 
dence), 22;  Kingston  Packet, 
49  ;  Kitty,  468  ;  Lexington, 
79  ;  La  Bretajne,  88  ;  Mag- 
nifique,  312  ;  Mayflower,  brig, 
159;  Mellish,  54;  Milford, 
56,  57,  58,  59 ;  Monsieur,  158  ; 
Pallas,  145,  148,  173  ;  Provi- 
dence, 22,  38-49,  53,  60,  66, 
127  ;  Ranger,  76-80,  91-115  ; 
Reprisal,  79  ;  Revenge,  79  ; 
Richard,  the,  144-147,  175, 
208,  220,  228,  414,  445,  446, 
467,  469  ;  Sally  (Columbus), 
2T ;  Sea  Flower,  49 ;  Sea 
Nymph,  43  ;  Serapis,  153, 
175,  208.  220,  228,  444,  447, 
4.51,  452;  Solebay,  44,  46; 
Somerset,  155  ;  South  Caro- 
lina (Indien),  313  ;  Success, 
49  ;  Surprise,  79  ;  Triom- 
phante,  315  ;  Triumph,  301, 


"  302 ;    Two    Friends   (slaver), 

7,   8  ;    Vengeance,  145  ;  Ver- 

wagting,     159  ;    Wasp,     22  ; 

Wolodimer,     363,    370,    371, 

.372,  379- 

Simpson,  Lieutenant,  79,  82, 
95,  107,  108,  123. 

Stacy,  Captain,  197. 

Stafford,  James  Bayard,  468, 
469. 

Stanhope,  Lieutenant,  207. 

Stirling,  General   Lord,  33. 

St.  Mary's  Isle,  seat  ot  the  Earl 
of  Selkirk,  98. 

Stormont,  Lord,  116,  121. 

Suvorof,  General,  364-367,  376. 

Swan,  Colonel,  419. 

Tarleton,  Colonel,  12,  463,  465. 
Telison,    Madame   de    (Delia), 

276,  331,  332,  430. 
Thackeray,  Willinm  M  ,  223. 
The    Grove,    home    of    Willie 

Jones,  12,  .160-463. 
Thompson,  Charles,  410. 
Truxtun,  Thomas,  296. 

Van  der  Capellen,  Baron,  235, 

433- 

Vaughan,  Daniel,  20. 
Vessels.     (See  under  Ships.) 

Wallingford,  Lieutenant,  95,  96. 
Walpole,  Robert,  276. 
Warner,  Elisha,  20. 
Washington,   Colonel  William, 

12. 
Washington,    General    George, 

25-  38,  39.  54,  83,   194,  306, 

307,  309,  443. 
Wayne,  General,  306. 
WTeaver,  Thomas,  20. 
Whipple,  Captain  Abraham,  20, 

22,  34,  127. 

Whipple,  William,  75. 
Whitehaven,    descent    on,    and 

burning  of,  95,  98. 
Wickes,  Captain,  79. 

Yorke,  Sir  Joseph,  232,  242,  245. 


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